Chapter 129: Idol Sports Competition (1)
In the corner of the freezing meeting room.
Seo Haim, imprisoned in the temporary prison on the 3rd floor, kept chattering nonstop.
The camera director filming Seo Haim was convinced that even if this young man were dropped on a deserted island, he would still be able to create footage on his own.
Seo Haim waved his hand toward the self-camera and spoke.
“Seo Haim’s Prison V-log—!”
There was something he had learned from Do Seohan.
It seemed that usually, they opened with this kind of refreshing greeting.
But that lasted only a moment.
Seo Haim returned to a sullen expression and spoke.
“Everyone, how’s the weather outside these days?”
Just by listening, one would think he had been imprisoned for several days.
With unusually drooped shoulders, Seo Haim added.
“I’ve been trapped here for hours, so I haven’t even seen the sky….”
Glance—
In truth, the meeting room had large glass windows behind him, so he only needed to turn his head slightly to see the sky….
“Ahem.”
Seo Haim pretended not to notice and turned his phone camera slightly.
At that moment, his gaze caught sight of the camera director peeking at him.
It was the person who had been diligently filming him from the corner since earlier.
Seo Haim’s eyes sparkled as he looked at the camera director.
“Did you commit a crime to end up dragged in here?”
“……”
“Let’s overcome this harsh world together.”
Nod, nod—
The camera director nodded, seemingly touched by Seo Haim’s warm consolation.
Indeed, in this cold prison, one needed another’s warmth… or so it seemed.
“But, when can I get out of here?”
Had the hyungs forgotten me?
Otherwise, there was no way they would leave him neglected this long.
Seo Haim pressed his face against the glass door and cried out desperately.
“Someone’s trapped… in here! A person is trapped, I tell you!”
Wait, no Golden Ball?
How could they still not come for this long?
Looking downcast, Seo Haim trudged back and squeezed himself into the corner again.
“I guess they’re not coming…. They must have forgotten about me.”
Everyone seemed too busy searching for Hint Balls to care about poor Choco Haim melting away inside prison.
Seo Haim once again pulled out his phone and held it high above his head.
“Prison Dinner V-log…. Today’s dinner is the Choco Pie I saved from earlier… huh?”
Seo Haim’s ears perked up.
“Isn’t that… footsteps?”
He thought he heard running sounds from somewhere, and soon a familiar silhouette came sprinting down the hallway.
“Gasp!”
Seo Haim, who had been crouching in the corner of the meeting room, suddenly jumped up.
Bouncing hair, dashing forward quickly, was none other than the boy-head-of-family, Do Seohan, whom he hadn’t seen in what felt like half a day.
“Seohan!”
Seohan raised the Golden Ball proudly in front of the glass door.
With quite a satisfied face, he spoke.
“I… found it.”
“Uwaaaaah!”
I knew I could count on you.
Seo Haim jumped in place, pressing both hands against the glass door.
“What, I can get out? For real?”
“Hyung, I did something, right?”
“As expected, Do Seohan is a god!”
How lonely he had felt, watching the other members one by one being released from prison.
Because no one had recognized his outstanding relay-running skills, he had been forced to remain in this prison.
But now.
“Finally! I can get out!”
Just as Seo Haim’s joyful scream rang out,
Buzz—
Static noise came from the walkie-talkie in Do Seohan’s pocket.
“Ah, wait a second.”
Seohan naturally raised the walkie-talkie to his ear and answered the call.
“Yes, Junseo hyung.”
-Oh, Seohan!
“Ah~. You mean you found everything except the blue ball?”
Huh?
What was that supposed to mean?
Seo Haim’s uneasy eyes shook up and down.
“Ah, I’ll head over there now.”
Seohan smoothly slipped the Golden Ball into his pocket and waved his hand.
Seo Haim’s eyes widened at the incomprehensible action.
No way.
No way, you.
“Are you… abandoning me?”
The guy who had come as if to use the Golden Ball suddenly turned his head away.
“Hey, Do Seohan!”
He’s really leaving?
Seo Haim urgently grabbed and rattled the doorknob.
You… you….
How could you do that!
“Do Seohan, come baaaack!”
Seo Haim’s anxious cry echoed down the hallway.
[Seo Haim has escaped prison.]
Ah, a person should have loyalty.
Of course he wouldn’t abandon him.
Do Seohan patted Seo Haim’s shoulder and walked out of the prison with him.
Though he had just been mumbling about betrayal, Haim quickly returned to his bright self, humming a tune as he walked ahead.
Do Seohan smiled faintly and spoke.
“You know this is broadcast material, right?”
“Of course, of course.”
“But hyung, there’s one piece of bad news.”
“What is it?”
“They just found all the blue balls.”
“…?”
Seo Haim’s eyes rolled round.
Wait a second.
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“Escape.”
That was it.
The walkie-talkie message earlier had been news that even the last blue ball had been found.
With that, the situation ended before he could even do anything.
“So… I was just waiting?”
“Uh… yeah. Except for one colored ball, the rest had been found a while ago.”
Thanks to Seohan running around everywhere insisting he would find the Golden Ball, they had managed to escape, but still, somehow.
“Why were there so few Golden Balls!”
Damn production crew.
Seo Haim trembled in frustration for a moment, but soon cheered up again, thinking it was still good to have escaped.
“Ah, well at least I’m outside in the end.”
“You’re positive, hyung.”
“Of course, of course.”
And so, they arrived at the 1st floor.
Downstairs, members who had already gathered the seven blue balls were combining the hints, while,
“Just one more, then we’ll go….”
“Waaah! Seongbin, save me~!”
was Kang Siwoo, the diligent prison guard at his main job.
Kang Siwoo was dragging Cha Seongbin’s arm, squabbling in front of the elevator.
“Ah, we already lost, so why are you dragging me along!”
“Hyung, how about you just clock out here?”
“Nooo~ I refuse!”
Tsk.
Seohan clicked his tongue and stood before the Hint Balls rolling around the 1st floor hallway.
All that remained was to piece together the password and open it.
Swinging his hand, he declared energetically.
“I caught—no, rescued Haim hyung!”
“I’ll be the one to combine the password!”
Clatter, clatter.
Seo Haim, returning late, strongly expressed his desire to at least add his spoon to the dish.
Since he had been imprisoned all along, it was pitiful in more ways than one to see him act like this.
The hints from the blue balls amounted to seven characters.
[Ra] [Seu] [In] [Su] [Gok] [Ta] [Rok]
“Alright, go ahead. You try.”
Jin Sehyun willingly gave up his spot to Seo Haim, but….
“Line?”
Not the messenger.
“Sugok Line? That’s the subway.”
Not public transportation.
“Forget it… I’ll do it.”
[Stardust Included Track]
“There were five included tracks in the last album, so the final digit should be 5.”
“Waaah!”
“Alright, Choco Haim, you enter it.”
“Ah, me for real?”
Ha Junseo, the eldest, patted Seo Haim’s shoulder and pushed him toward the front door.
Excited, Seo Haim scampered forward.
Watching from afar, Jin Sehyun shook his head.
“He’s really like Junseo hyung’s pet chick….”
As soon as the password was entered, click, the sound of the lock releasing rang out.
At the same time, a buzzing sound came from the speaker.
[Password input successful.]
[Password input successful.]
[All Stardust agents have successfully escaped.]
Clang.
At last, the firmly shut main gate opened, and,
“Ah, if only I’d caught Do Seohan….”
Kang Siwoo muttered softly, full of lingering regret.
Thus, just like the last mission, victory once again went to the team with more members.
The four Dusty agents walked away with satisfied smiles.
“Me too… me too!”
“Hyung, you’re going back to prison with us.”
“What are you talking about!”
All except for one person—Cha Seongbin.
It was a heartwarming ending where everyone escaped the prison.
[Thus, the Stardust agents safely escaped from Dusty Prison….]
As a familiar narration played, the camera zoomed out on the backs of the members.
[From now on, you must all live happily ever after~?]
Secret Agent Stardust: Safely Escaping from Prison 完
[Choco Haim, who escaped after doing nothing but breathing in prison]
He kept flopping around wanting to get out, but stayed trapped the whole time lololololol.
Muttering to himself alone was pure sentiment….
And what even was that prison V-log ㅠㅠ.
Meanwhile, the camera director was in an extreme job lolol.
For real, his ears must be bleeding since our boy doesn’t stop talking.
-Now I get why Mam-Seohan can’t handle Choco Haim’s tension lolol.
└Is he really a chick ㅠㅠ he keeps chirping nonstop lolol.
└The calm maknae versus the not-so-calm hyung.
└Kekekekeke they’re calling him chirpy lolol.
└Honestly, that single word describes Seo Haim perfectly.
└Maybe the reason his nickname is Choco Haim Chick isn’t just because he looks like one, but because his decibels are like a chick’s.
└Kingly Godly Insight.
-Our Choco Haim…. At the beginning of Starf, I really thought he was the cute and quiet maknae position….
└????
└Huh?
└What were you watching, Choco Haim has been noisy from start to finish.
└Ah lolol, he’s never been quiet lolol.
└Our boy has literally never been shy ㅠㅠ.
[Thoughts after watching this self-content]
I realized our boys aren’t actually bad at sports (running)….
Which means… for ISAC relay… mmph.
-You said the forbidden word.
└Ah f*ck lololololol.
└Damn, I had forgotten, why remind me.
└Don’t even say the “I” of ISAC, it pisses me off ㅡㅡ.
└Ah PTSD incoming please ㅠㅠ.
-They’ll go to ISAC anyway hahaha, since they’re rookies, it’s inevitable right?
└Yep lol.
└It’s mandatory for first-years.
└If Doubles had grabbed MBN by the collar they wouldn’t have to go.
└But they seem super close.
└Damn it.
└Please, just once, grab them by the collar???
-Forget relay, just do e-sports instead.
└Please ㅠㅠ.
└But honestly, I think they’ll definitely go, bouncing around the field happily.
└Sh*t, they’re energetic little kids….
└They’re literally the right age for sports competitions.
└Ah, true.
└Wait, aren’t three of them minors???
-You can come last, just don’t get hurt.
└This, agreed.
└Please, just don’t get hurt ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ.
└We trust you, kids, do it safely and come back!!!!
└Since you’re probably going for relay, just don’t get injured running around like puppies in the snow….
└Puppies in the snow lolol why does that remind me of Kang Siwoo.
└Our Siberian Husky who runs like crazy ㅠㅠ.
Chuseok was approaching….
Which meant the season of <Idol Sports Competition> was drawing near.
The living room of the Stardust dorm.
Siwoo hyung pulled out a ballpoint pen.
They had to add a few more events, including group and individual participation….
“Which events do you want to enter?”
Seo Haim and Jin Sehyun simultaneously threw their hands up with a bang.
“Me, relay!”
“E-sports! My fingers are good at exercising.”
Jin Sehyun started appealing with his pride in e-sports.
“I’m good at PUBG.”
“Wasn’t LoLxChess the only thing you were good at?”
“I’m good at anything you play with fingers.”
“Ian, what about you?”
“I’ll go with Sehyun too…. Siwoo, what about you?”
“I think relay looks fun.”
In the middle of that, I said.
“You’re all so full of energy.”
Youth really is a blessing, isn’t it?
I was watching with my chin propped.
But then.
“Do Seohan, do you want to enter relay?”
“Huh?”
So much for spectating.