Chapter 23: Birthday Party (2)
At the same time, in a soft tofu stew restaurant on the outskirts of an alleyway.
There had been quite a few people who subtly recognized me after the broadcast aired, so that was one reason we chose such a remote spot—but apart from that, this was one of my favorite restaurants.
It felt warm, like homemade food.
Just one sip of the broth would somehow soothe my insides.
Even after I was dropped from the final debut team, I had come here crying my eyes out….
I looked at Seo Ian hyung and opened my mouth.
"This place is good."
"Uh… yeah, okay."
He already had a soft tofu-like mentality.
If I left him alone, he would definitely end up blaming himself—thinking he’d made things worse because of me, or that he’d hurt the program.
Just like always, he had never done anything wrong.
But he always took the blame himself.
That it was his fault I got cut from the KJ debut team.
That it was the reason I couldn't debut, even though I’d wanted it so badly.
Because he was always that kind of person.
"Um… Seohan."
Like he had something to say, Soft Tofu Hyung’s lips twitched.
But I could already tell what he was going to say.
So I made the first move.
"I’m saying this in advance—if you’re about to apologize, don’t."
"…How did you know?"
Ahem.
He coughed awkwardly and pulled a spoon out from the utensil holder.
I could tell just by looking into his eyes.
Seriously, he was so transparent it was easy to read his thoughts.
Seo Ian opened his mouth, looking troubled.
"Actually, Lee Junhyeok came to me about that situation. I think I gave him an opening back then… If I’d just kept my expression in check, things wouldn’t have blown up like this… That’s what I feel sorry about."
The one who let things spiral this far was Lee Junhyeok.
He stupidly fell into the trap he set himself.
Hyung hadn’t done anything wrong.
But seeing him beat himself up like that…
"Hmm."
I wanted a drink.
A shot of soju with this spicy broth would be perfect.
I could barely handle half a bottle, but today, I was really craving it.
Since we were filming tomorrow, I couldn’t get drunk—just drink lightly.
I instinctively raised my hand and spoke.
"Ajumma, could we get…."
Oh.
Right.
I was still a minor.
Only seventeen.
"One bottle of cider, please!"
"Okay—coming right up!"
That could’ve been really bad.
"Why? Something wrong?"
"N-no, it’s nothing."
As Seo Ian looked up at me with confused eyes, I calmed my startled heart and gave an awkward smile.
The lady marked the cider on the chart and went inside, only to come back shortly and set the bottle down with a thud.
I hadn’t really thought about it until now, but I’d need to be more careful in the future.
If I accidentally walked out of a convenience store with a can of beer, my broadcast career would be over.
"Three years… three years…."
I mean, telling me to give up chicken and beer for three years was a bit much.
I hadn’t even liked alcohol that much, but once you know the taste, it becomes hard to resist—and that made me feel strangely down.
Ahem.
But soju wasn’t the issue here. I cleared my throat lightly and changed the subject.
Stirring the hot soft tofu stew that had just arrived, I opened my mouth.
"Hyung, are you… doing okay?"
White steam clouded my vision.
For a moment, I couldn’t see his face, so I wasn’t sure—but the voice that answered sounded pretty calm.
"Yeah, better than I thought."
"Whatever else, that guy’s probably going to get indicted."
The manager from KJ Entertainment.
The testimonies from the trainees at the time were making things more complicated than expected.
With public opinion this bad, they wouldn’t be able to just sweep it under the rug. Even if hyung didn’t speak up, that guy would be made to take the fall as a scapegoat.
Hyung nodded as he spoke.
"That’s a relief. I managed to get out, but as long as he was still there, I kept worrying about the trainees still stuck inside…."
"……"
"But now, I want to live my own life."
For him, it had only been two years since it happened.
The wounds from back then probably hadn’t healed yet, but he seemed to have already organized his thoughts.
The past was the past.
He had to find his own path now.
I’d worried that he had a soft tofu mentality.
But maybe this hyung had a surprisingly strong mental core.
"This is my last chance—if I let the past hold me back, I won’t be able to do anything."
He gave a faint smile and slurped up a spoonful of broth.
Just up to this point.
I’ll try up to this point, and if it doesn’t work, I’ll quit.
The way he said that reminded me of myself eight years ago.
"Admit that you have no talent, Do Seohan."
There are people in this world who shine even when they stand still—
And those who don’t.
I remembered myself back then, repeating those words over and over in my head.
Maybe that’s why.
Words I didn’t even need to say just tumbled out.
"You’re right, hyung."
"Hm?"
"Live your life, hyung. No matter what the reporters say, no matter how they edit the broadcast. Even if you get talked about and your ranking rises because of pity votes—just ignore all the people who’ll try to drag you down. Just, like you said earlier. You keep doing what you’ve always done."
I scooped up a spoonful of the still-hot soft tofu stew and swallowed it down with some rice. The broth was so hot it burned down my throat and made my chest ache.
Originally, Seo Ian wasn’t supposed to debut from the Stardust Project.
I didn’t really know what happened in his life after that since I was too busy worrying about my own to care.
But over the past eight years, I had never once seen his face again on TV.
I didn’t want to give someone who had already suffered so much false hope.
Even knowing that it wouldn’t work out.
Giving meaningless comfort was really just pointless.
I set down my spoon and opened my mouth.
"I’ll make sure you debut, hyung."
So this wasn’t some kind of false hope.
Yeah, a promise.
It was a promise.
I looked Seo Ian straight in the eye and said.
"You’re definitely going to debut."
At those words, Seo Ian let out a faint laugh.
"…It sounds nice, even if it’s just words."
After a short dinner, I headed straight back to the practice room.
Over the past week, I’d been so busy with dance practice, vocal practice, and prepping for the team lecture that I barely had time to close my eyes, and still, it felt like I hadn’t practiced enough.
At least the team lecture had wrapped up the other day, so I got a bit of breathing room, but that didn’t mean I could slack off today.
Even if the other hyungs had already gone home, I planned to run through the routine a few more times before heading back to the dorm.
Step, step—
I walked up the stairs of the building, now so familiar it felt like home, and made my way to the practice room.
Even if I wasted a bit of time outside, it was only 9 p.m.
"They should still be practicing by now."
Maybe not Lee Junhyeok, but no way those hardworking guys had left already.
There was no guarantee we’d be on the same team in the next evaluation, but we’d agreed to practice one last time together tonight.
But.
It was weirdly quiet.
Hmm?
"Did they really… go home?"
The practice room was pitch-black with the lights off.
Looks like they practiced before dinner and then left.
"Well, I guess they did work hard last week."
It was disappointing, but it couldn’t be helped.
They deserved a break today too.
Muttering softly to myself, I grabbed the doorknob.
I dropped my bag with a thunk in the darkness and took a step forward without much thought.
"Hmm hmm."
Humming a meaningless tune,
I was feeling along the wall, trying to find the light switch,
When I suddenly saw a figure in the pitch darkness.
What the hell was that?
My legs froze instinctively.
Did I see that wrong?
"…?"
I furrowed my brow and stepped toward the switch—
And locked eyes with the shadowy figure.
‘Trainee Do Seohan, are you scared of ghosts?’
‘Ah? Yeah, I’m really scared of that stuff….’
‘Really? I heard people say for years there’s a ghost wandering our practice room….’
The interview lines overlapped in my head at the perfect moment.
‘Hope you never run into it.’
"Uh…uh…uh…."
W-wait a sec.
"Uaaahhh!"
With a single shriek, I slammed the door shut.
Thud thud thud—
Ha Junseo rushed out after Do Seohan, who bolted in utter terror.
He had darted off so fast he really looked like a hamster diving into a hole.
"Hey!"
Click!
Wait, did he really just lock the door on instinct?
That was a survival-level reflex speed.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Ha Junseo shouted urgently.
"Seohan, open the door!"
"What’s up with him?"
"I don’t know. He ran off the moment he saw my face."
"Maybe… you just look scary?"
Of course, now wasn’t the time to be having such ridiculous banter.
Jin Sehyun frowned and knocked gently on the door.
"Please open up."
"Se…Seohan…."
"He seriously locked the door."
Could he not hear them from outside?
I was worried he might just take off with the door still locked, but thankfully, the soundproofing wasn’t that extreme.
Bang. Bang.
"Hey, Do Seohan!"
"…?"
Seohan, who looked like he might faint at any moment, finally opened his eyes wide.
The dark practice room.
Familiar faces pounding on the door from the other side.
Once I came to my senses, it was honestly a pretty embarrassing scene.
"Do Seohan!"
"Uh…uh…yeah?"
"It’s us, for real!"
His face was completely pale, like he’d just seen a ghost.
Ha Junseo knew he was a scaredy-cat, but he hadn’t expected it to be this bad, and let out a weak laugh.
"You… what the heck did you think we were?"
"……."
Creeaak—
Instead of replying, the door slowly opened.
Seohan, who looked like he’d lost a little weight already, swallowed and rolled his eyes.
From his gaze alone, you could read a whole lot of meaning.
"…I’m coming in."
Click—
Thanks to Jin Sehyun flipping the switch at just the right moment, the practice room lit up brightly.
Behind him, there was a Choco Pie cake that looked hastily thrown together.
Originally, they had planned to stick candles in it and surprise Seohan the moment he walked in.
But he arrived later than expected, so the timing was completely off.
Still…
"You said you weren’t scared of things like this."
"If he says he’s not, then I guess he’s not."
At Ha Junseo’s comment, Jin Sehyun shrugged and replied.
From the subtle excitement in their voices, it was obvious they were all holding back the urge to tease him more.
"……."
A heavy silence.
"Pfft."
Only Seo Haim failed to hold back and burst into giggles.
"We were trying to throw a surprise… party, sure, but not that kind of surprise."
It was supposed to be a surprise party,
But making someone faint from shock hadn’t been part of the plan.
"He’s a human being, after all. Treating him like a ghost sighting is a bit harsh, don’t you think?"
"Anyone would think we showed up in full horror makeup or something."
"Seriously, hyung."
Ahem.
Seohan cleared his throat and averted his gaze.
"Um, I was just a little surprised."
Honestly, calling that “just surprised” was generous—everyone here had seen him practically collapse and lock the door behind him.
He tried to answer calmly, but the emotion in his voice was pure embarrassment.
‘Ah, this is so embarrassing.’
Ears don’t lie.
His face was so red it looked like it might explode any second.
‘Sometimes he talks like a grown-up, but in moments like this, he’s such a kid.’
Another minute of teasing and he might cry.
Ha Junseo smirked and gestured with his chin.
"Seohan, come have a seat."
"Okay."
After calming the startled kid down, it was time to properly begin the birthday party.
It was a modest celebration, with only a Choco Pie cake to speak of, but the main event was something else entirely.
"Happy birthday. Here’s your gift."
The official gift-giving ceremony.
Just hearing the word ‘gift’ was enough to light up his pale face.
In the midst of their busy schedules, they had still taken the time to prepare something for a teammate they’d only been with for a week.
Seohan’s eyes sparkled as he let out a small gasp.
"Wow, how did you…."
Do Seohan’s gaze landed first on Seo Haim, who stepped forward.
Maybe it was just his imagination,
But from earlier, there had been a strange jingling sound accompanying everything.
Jingle jingle—
"When did you even…."
Do Seohan’s face twisted into a question mark as he checked the gift in Seo Haim’s hand.
Hmm.
"Sunflower seeds?"
Is this for real?