Chapter 175: Because It’s the Year-End (1)
"Your front door password needs to be changed."
Manager Lee Jaeyoon frowned after hearing about Jin Sehyun’s incident.
He flicked his finger as if thinking, then quickly turned his head.
"If it opened from outside, that’s one thing. But you said it was definitely locked and found open the next day."
"Yes, Siwoo hyung saw it."
"Then that means it was opened from the inside."
A chill ran down my spine.
Seo Haim trembled as she opened her eyes wide.
"What? Then is it really a ghost?"
Maybe a ghost would be better.
"…It might’ve been a sasaeng."
At my quiet words, Kang Siwoo swallowed dryly.
Just last month, a sasaeng had been hanging around near our house.
They weren’t the type to approach us directly, and they always bolted the moment they saw us.
The manager hyung had warned them a few times, but it seemed useless.
Not like we could call the police right away either.
If the sasaeng problem could be solved legally, idols wouldn’t have been suffering with it all this time.
Kang Siwoo nodded with a grave face.
"I’ll change the door code and text you guys."
"Okay. Let me know if anything like that happens again."
Manager Lee Jaeyoon gently turned the steering wheel and changed lanes.
We were almost at the Doubles company building when we got caught at another red light.
Lee Jaeyoon grumbled while checking the side mirror.
"This road always hits red lights during rush hour."
"It’s always jammed…."
"Exactly."
Right then,
"Oh, right."
Manager Lee Jaeyoon tapped the steering wheel as if he remembered something.
"Seongbin, did you think about the offer from A2?"
An offer?
At this new piece of information, all eyes turned to him.
Ha Junseo widened his eyes and asked Cha Seongbin.
"What offer? You got an offer?"
"What, what? Cha Seongbin hyung getting a solo variety show?"
"Ah, it’s not for a variety show…."
A2? That’s a label.
Under the members’ piercing stares, Cha Seongbin awkwardly scratched his head and smiled.
"I haven’t had time to think about it. I’ve… been mulling it over."
"What is it?"
"I… got a producing offer."
Uncharacteristically, Cha Seongbin cleared his throat shyly.
Still, a producing offer was definitely surprising news.
"Wow, the offer came directly from A2?"
"Producing! Hyung, you’ve made it."
He’s a talent capable of even creating the title track for Stardust.
All the songs he released were well received, so it was no surprise he’d get an offer eventually.
Still, it came a little faster than expected.
Is he already on the path of a composer-idol?
Seo Haim rolled her eyes and asked.
"Hyung, so you’re going to compose for another singer?"
"Well, yeah, it’s something like that. But if it makes you guys uncomfortable, I won’t do it~."
"What are you saying, of course you should."
Gaining experience in various producing gigs would benefit not only Cha Seongbin’s career, but also help him grow to the next level.
At Jin Sehyun’s firm reply, I added on.
"You have to do it. It’s a huge opportunity."
"And A2’s a major label, right?"
They have a bunch of idols, some ballad singers too….
I don’t remember clearly, but overall their recognition was decent.
Ha Junseo must’ve had a similar question as he cautiously asked.
"But if it’s A2, then who…?"
"Uh, well."
Cha Seongbin blinked and finally spoke.
After some hesitation, his lower lip slowly parted.
"Han Gabin from BK. I heard he’s releasing a solo album."
Han Gabin from BK?
Didn’t expect to hear that name here.
"That’s weird… I feel like I’ve been seeing that guy a lot lately."
Right?
Am I trapped in Han Gabin’s cinematic universe?
"He’s really out there grinding."
"Seriously. He’s doing variety, and now a solo."
BK has been around for a while, after all.
Han Gabin debuting as a solo might be unexpected, but that didn’t change the fact that it was still a good opportunity.
Cha Seongbin added with an awkward smile.
"Personally, I want to aim for the title track, so if I’m going to do it… I want to do it properly."
"Go for it. I’m in favor."
"Ah, our Seongbin hyung’s going to get crazy busy again."
Jin Sehyun feigned a pout as he asked playfully.
"Will you have time to make songs for us?"
"Ah, exactly. That’s what I wanted to say."
Cha Seongbin’s eyes sparkled as he continued.
"Actually, I already have one song ready."
"Huh?"
It must’ve been a hectic comeback season—when did he even manage that?
Just how many songs are hidden in Cha Seongbin’s hard drive?
—was what I was thinking when.
Cha Seongbin slowly raised his hand.
"Manager-nim, can we release a carol song?"
With Cha Seongbin’s bombshell, the car fell into silence.
* * *
Just before Christmas.
We came to a studio to shoot a special video that would be released on Christmas Day.
I thought we’d just shoot something simple at the company, but the spacious studio made us gasp in awe.
What instantly caught the eye was the Christmas tree standing proudly in the corner.
Seo Haim bounced with excitement as she gushed over the towering tree full of Christmas vibes.
“Wow, it’s really big!”
I tilted my head up at the nearly life-sized Christmas tree.
It looked like it was prepared as a nice background piece, but aside from the LED lights wrapped around it, it was rather bare.
Jin Sehyun, always quick on the uptake, came over and spoke.
“Are we supposed to hang the ornaments ourselves?”
“Seems like it, right?”
After we thoroughly looked around, we each took a seat at the white table.
Judging by the vibe of the studio, it didn’t seem like there’d be a game or mission here.
Still, we were instinctively on guard, having been burned too many times by the self-content team’s obsession with missions.
Right then, a self-content staff member came running up and handed out small pieces of paper and pens.
“You’ll be using these today. Please take one!”
“Ah, okay!”
As instructed, Kang Siwoo collected them and passed them out one by one.
“What’s this for?”
Two sheets of paper were given to each of us.
I picked up a thin sheet and asked.
Didn’t seem like it was for origami—probably something we had to write.
Hopefully not a lottery draw.
It nearly triggered my PTSD from sleeping in a vinyl greenhouse during <Surviving on a Deserted Island>.
Thankfully, in line with the heartwarming year-end mood, the self-content team prepared a peaceful mission for once.
“It’s almost the end of the year. On one paper, please write your New Year’s wish for next year….”
And the other one?
“Write down the gift you want to receive!”
A Christmas gift?
At the youngest writer’s words, Jin Sehyun’s eyes sparkled.
“Then will we actually get it?”
“Sehyun-ah, write down ‘a house.’”
At Cha Seongbin’s worldly remark, Seo Ian burst into laughter.
“A house might be out of budget, so write something realistically plausible.”
“How about a car?”
“Sehyun doesn’t have a driver’s license.”
“Actually, I don’t either.”
“If we write that down, won’t the company kick us all out?”
The flustered self-content team mouthed their response.
“We’re really giving them. Don’t write joke answers.”
Wait, seriously?
That one sentence made everyone take it seriously.
“I’ll write mine with full effort.”
Jin Sehyun buried his head into the desk and started writing diligently.
Next to him, Seo Haim was sneakily trying to peek at his paper….
“What are you looking at!”
“I just want to know the format.”
“Just write something.”
“I’m going to copy what Jin Sehyun writes. What gift did you put down?”
“Ugh, move.”
As usual, the same old bickering duo.
Kang Siwoo shook his head and glanced my way.
“Seohan-ah, what are you going to write?”
“I haven’t decided yet.”
Guess I should give it some thought.
.
.
.
.
The once-empty Christmas tree was now adorned with glittering ornaments.
Thanks to the effort we put into decorating it, it looked like a scene straight out of a Christmas movie when the lights were turned on.
Enough admiring.
It was time to check the notes we wrote earlier.
Each of us took the two notes we received from the self-content team.
After writing down our wishes and desired gifts, we placed them inside ornament balls with lids and closed them.
Kang Siwoo stood on tiptoe and pointed at a green ball.
“Whose ornament is this?”
“Think it’s mine.”
Ha Junseo raised his hand high. Kang Siwoo grinned and spoke to him.
“Come open it yourself.”
“Yessir!”
Zoom—
Ha Junseo darted out with an excited face.
He gave a subtle look toward the camera before carefully opening the ornament.
Maybe it was because it was the year-end,
Or because we were talking about gifts.
Everyone was unusually giddy.
“But are we really getting the gifts?”
“Probably. Though they might tweak them a bit.”
“True. Like giving a mini Ferrari instead of a real one.”
“Or a miniature house.”
“Ah, no way.”
A fair point.
Ha Junseo swallowed dryly as he opened the note.
Kang Siwoo held the mic to Ha Junseo’s mouth.
“First, my New Year’s wish… is that all of us, Universe Dust, stay healthy, happy, and have a fulfilling year.”
“Waaaah, as expected from the eldest.”
“So thoughtful.”
Though thoughtful, his gift choice might be materialistic.
The hyenas, curious about the second note, had their eyes gleaming.
Ha Junseo chuckled and covered his mouth.
“Hey, why are you staring at me like that?”
“I’m thinking this. Our angel Junseo hyung would definitely write… buffet coupons for his dongsaengs! Something like that.”
“Junseo hyung really is an angel.”
Nod nod—
I chimed in on Jin Sehyun’s teasing of Ha Junseo.
“Because Junseo hyung is so sincere about Seochi. All of that is his affection for me. So wouldn’t he have written something for me?”
“Seohan-ah, no.”
“No?”
Ah, that’s too bad.
Gulp.
I swallowed and waited for Ha Junseo to reveal his note.
With a cough, a careful statement slipped from his lips.
“The gift I want to receive is… a KaX coffee machine.”
“Hey.”
Cha Seongbin burst into laughter and called out to Ha Junseo.
“Aigoo, Junseo-ya.”
“Didn’t you write that a bit too sincerely?”
“You were supposed to write something funny~.”
“W-Wasn’t that the point? Was it too materialistic?”
Ha Junseo rolled his eyes and glanced nervously at the self-content team.
It’s okay. Junseo was just being honest.
Jin Sehyun clicked his tongue and looked toward the camera.
“Junseo hyung making coffee every morning—it was kind of pitiful.”
“I… really wanted a coffee machine.”
Come on, Doubles, buy him one.
“Junseo hyung wants a coffee machine!”
“I… I don’t know. I already committed.”
“Hyung, if it were me, I would’ve written the KaX headquarters.”
“As expected! Jin Sehyun has sense!”
Ha Junseo shuffled awkwardly back to his seat.
“Ah… I’m doomed.”
“It was even funnier that way.”
“Put your heart into coffee and go for a coffee company commercial.”
Since the first person gave such a materialistic answer, the next person had an even heavier burden.
“Okay. Next up.”
Kang Siwoo’s hand carefully scanned the ornaments hanging on the tree.
Chrrr—
The ornaments clinked with soft metallic sounds as they swayed.
And then.
His hand finally stopped at a sparkling white ornament dusted with glitter.
“Whose is this?”
It was mine.
“Mine.”
At that one word, the eyes of those hyenas sparkled once again.
Cha Seongbin got excited and drummed the table with his hands.
“Do Seohan, let’s hear your New Year’s wish~.”
“Honestly, I’m more curious about the second one.”
As expected, my wish was health, hope, happiness, and success. The usual.
Nothing particularly special came to mind.
“Mm. Yes. Very nice.”
“Alright, then! What gift do you want?”
“Did Do Seohan also walk the path of materialism?!”
Let’s reveal it.
“The gift I want to receive is….”