176: Since It’s the End of the Year (2)
“The gift I want to receive is….”
After pausing for a moment, I opened my mouth.
It was quite a shameless answer.
“Giant sunflower seeds.”
“Pfft.”
Cough—
Cha Seongbin choked and fell forward.
“…That’s amazing.”
Clap, clap, clap.
Applause erupted from the side.
Jin Sehyun, deeply impressed by my line, exclaimed in admiration.
“Wow, as expected.”
“Do Seohan’s variety sense is insane.”
“Junseo, this is how you do it.”
This was real entertainment.
I showed the note to the camera and added a comment.
“Giant sunflower seeds, one kilogram. That’s what I wrote.”
“Ahahaha! I want to see!”
Seo Haim burst out laughing and came closer to check the note.
“Wow… it really says that?”
“I genuinely wanted to receive them.”
“Puhahaha!”
I was sincere about becoming a true hamster idol.
Watching me, Ha Junseo clicked his tongue and muttered quietly.
“Selling gift coupons for the sake of entertainment….”
“Sunflower seeds taste good when you snack on them. Want me to share some with you, hyung?”
“Do Seohan, you’ve never even tried them!”
“Shh, that’s a trade secret.”
Anyway.
“…Would that even go well with coffee?”
Ha Junseo looked like he was seriously pondering it for a moment.
Aside from everything else—
Why did coffee need a snack in the first place?
Anyway, the production team looked very pleased with my answer.
We managed to save quite a bit of the filming budget in multiple ways.
Kang Siwoo’s eyes sparkled as he relayed the Self-content Team’s message.
“They said a one-kilogram bag of sunflower seeds will be delivered to the dorm soon.”
“Waaah!”
“Seohan, congratulations!”
Nodding contentedly, I gave an OK sign toward the camera.
I was still curious whether what the Self-content Team was sending were just sunflower seeds or giant ones—whether they were organic or pesticide-treated, but….
We had to move on quickly since we still had to do the Christmas live broadcast afterward.
“Alright—next.”
Jin Sehyun wrapped it up with the slate closing line.
“The leftover sunflower seeds from filming were eaten deliciously by Seohan.”
That’s how it ended.
Christmas Eve, the day before Christmas.
On JjaekJjaek, Dusties’ humble wishes were being posted in real time.
Poma @foma17_22
Just give us one Christmas self-content from the boys.
Daban @rlawu2944
Doubles, we’re not asking for much.
Please do a live.
└They’ll probably toss us that much at least.
└No notification yet, I’m getting super anxious….
└Our boys are such good sons, they’ll probably suggest doing a live themselves.
└Ha… right? I’m holding on like a fool ㅠㅠ
It was already Christmas Eve, yet both the official account and the fan community remained silent.
There was no way they’d let it pass like nothing happened.
Fans just wanted any small teaser—anything.
At that very moment, when Dusties were desperately waiting for a Christmas live—
Ding—
The phone of a university student Dusty rang with a Yui App alert.
Oh.
I felt it instantly.
“It’s the Christmas live!”
Dash—
It didn’t even take ten seconds to open the app, and a quiet gasp escaped the university student Dusty’s lips.
“Ah, damn.”
The first thing that appeared on the screen as soon as I entered was a beautifully sparkling Christmas tree and….
The members were smiling so brightly that even the glow of the bright lights seemed to fade away.
Wearing matching pajamas full of Christmas vibes, the members waved toward the fans.
What the heck ㅋㅋㅋ Their hair, makeup, and outfit today are insane.
Guys, are you angels who descended from the sky???
Who said Ha Junseo doesn’t have the perfect “meeting the parents” face? Even if he came down the chimney, he’d still get a free passㅎ My mom would love him—he looks like Santa.
Their styling perfectly matched today’s concept—Santa hats, polar bear fur caps, and even Christmas pajamas.
Even though this wasn’t an official schedule, it was obvious the stylist had put a lot of effort into it.
And then.
What caught the Dusties’ eyes were the various instruments placed around the spacious studio.
What’s that???
Are they gonna sing carols today??
Oh my god, I already love this.
Universe Dust, you guys are my Christmas present ㅠㅠ Ha
The university Dusty gulped nervously, heart pounding.
Could it be that they were about to watch their boys perform Christmas carols live?
‘They must’ve been busy right after their comeback, but they still prepared all this.’
They truly loved their fans.
No words other than “so proud” came to mind. The university Dusty watched the live broadcast with a satisfied smile.
Then, Kang Siwoo, holding a microphone, grinned.
“What day is it tomorrow?”
“Christmas!!”
“That’s right.”
Seo Haim’s loud answer drew laughter from all around.
Wearing a Rudolph headband, Seo Haim chuckled shyly and continued.
“So what did we prepare today?”
“A Christmas carol medley!”
“Waaaaah!”
Ah, damn, this was so good.
The university Dusty screamed with joy inside.
“Shall we start with the carol that’s a must for Christmas?”
“Sounds good.”
Cha Seongbin hugged his guitar and strummed it gently, plucking the strings with smooth fingers.
An acoustic carol, full of warmth, flowed from his fingertips.
Even the way my baby plays guitar is unfair….
It already sounds amazing ㅠㅠ These idol geniuses, seriously.
Main vocalist Seo Ian gripped the mic.
Last Christmas—
Seo Ian’s voice, which felt sweeter than usual today, tickled the Dusty’s ears.
Ah—ah-ah—ah—
Other members’ harmonies layered softly over it.
Who says Stardust can’t do live performances? Just show them this recording and they’ll shut up.
This is heaven.
They probably hadn’t practiced the song that long, and yet, they sounded perfectly in sync.
The university Dusty nodded along, lost in blissful appreciation.
Cha Seongbin changed the chords and naturally transitioned to the next carol.
It was a famous pop carol she always made sure to listen to during Christmas season.
She hadn’t expected the boys to sing it—her ears were in paradise.
After three or four live songs flew by in an instant,
“How was the carol live, everyone?”
Kang Siwoo lowered his mic and asked the fans.
Jin Sehyun murmured softly, amazed at how fast the comments were flowing.
“Wow, the reaction’s on fire.”
“We worked really hard on this. I’m glad you liked it.”
Just then, Seohan opened his mouth.
“Actually, there’s one more song we prepared.”
“The final cover song!”
I love that there’s another one, but the fact it’s the last… I’m gonna cry.
Even if you didn’t prepare more, it’s fine—just play the medley ten million more times. I’ll use it as my lullaby.
The end? I refuse to believe it.
Encore!
Encore!!!
Please, just five more songs.
Sorry, Dusties are shameless, right? Just two more songs, please.
This wasn’t even a concert hall, yet the Dusties were desperately spamming encore comments.
Cha Seongbin let out a small laugh and picked up his guitar again.
“Dusties~. We’re not done yet.”
“One big one left!”
“We thought about it deeply, and we figured this last song might just be your favorite.”
“Right, right.”
“It’s a really famous song.”
They’d already sung quite a few famous songs though.
The university Dusty tilted their head.
“Is it ‘Santa Tell Me’?”
Honestly, anything would’ve been fine.
The university Dusty smiled faintly while watching Cha Seongbin focus on tuning his guitar.
Kang Siwoo spoke into the mic.
“We’ll begin.”
Drring—
The moment the first line echoed out.
“Hm?”
The Dusty blinked at the unfamiliar melody.
If they’d heard it even once before, they would’ve felt at least a little sense of familiarity….
‘This is completely new?’
As they absentmindedly nodded along, one possibility flashed through the university Dusty’s mind.
Their eyes widened.
No way.
This…
Holy crap, is this an unreleased song??
[Universe Dust revealed a surprise carol song during their Christmas live broadcast]
I was waiting because they said it’d be a cover of a super famous song,
but the song was insanely good and I’d never heard it before!!
So I was like ???
and it turned out to be an unreleased carol song by Universe Dust.
Dusties watching the live broadcast in real time just fainted…ㅋㅋㅋ
The fact that they said it’s a song for the fans and that they hope we listen to it warmly and comfortably is seriously so touching ㅠㅠ
└ Ah, for real???
└ They even knew that Dusties get obsessed with chart results because rival fandoms are so aggressive ㅠㅠ
└ Still, shut up and stream
└ Stream ㄱㄱ
The lyrics alone make me cry. “I’ve gone through countless Christmases, but this is my first one with you.” Ha ㅠㅠ Congrats on your debut, Universe Dust.
└ Hearing that really makes it hit that they’re still rookies ㅋㅋㅋ
└ They’re stage geniuses, but it’s only been eight months since debut….
└ Once again, I vow to be a Dusty for life….
.
.
.
“What are you listening to?”
Clatter—
Taekyung swung open the door and walked in.
Han Gabin flinched and took off the headset from his ears, snapping irritably.
“Could you knock? You scared me.”
“Oh, a carol song?”
The words had no effect on him at all.
The moment he saw the album title on the monitor, Taekyung immediately recognized it.
It was the carol song that Stardust released for Christmas.
He’d listened to it before too, around when it was trending thanks to the surprise live broadcast reveal.
“The song’s good. I heard your friend composed it.”
“Yeah….”
Stardust’s Cha Seongbin.
The fact that he could produce songs only a year into debut showed that he was no rookie to underestimate.
His musical style perfectly matched Han Gabin’s taste.
Trendy beats and sensuous melodies that didn’t stray far from mainstream pop.
There was something about it that stuck in your head after just one listen.
Right now, it would be easy to get a song from him—but later, people might have to line up for one.
Wanting to get a song from Cha Seongbin had been Han Gabin’s idea.
Taekyung sat half-perched on a chair and quietly looked at Han Gabin.
“It’s all good, but….”
Taekyung bit his lower lip, carefully choosing his words.
And then—
“Can you really do a solo album in your current state?”