Chapter 302: Crash Landing (2)
“Since we've got plenty of time anyway, how about recording something with a selfie camera?”
It was Jin Sehyun who suggested it first.
Filming full-fledged self-content would be difficult, but carrying around a selfie camera and recording a vlog while sightseeing was definitely doable.
Jin Sehyun grinned.
“I heard fans really like this kind of thing.”
“Something with a natural vibe?”
“Yeah. Let's give it a try.”
Fortunately, there were spare cameras.
There were only two, and they weren't professional filming cameras, but they were more than enough for making a vlog.
“I think it'll be fun too.”
“Manager-hyung, give us the cameras!”
And just like that, we began recording our unexpected crash-landing diary in Toronto....
Day 1 of our Toronto trip.
The place we visited with the members was the Music Garden, built along the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto.
It was a sightseeing spot Ha Junseo had looked up.
He had been busy searching through his phone at the airport, and somehow managed to plan an entire sightseeing route in that short amount of time.
Thus began our humble free trip with nothing but ourselves.
The moment we got out of the rental car, the members let out one excited exclamation after another.
“This place has such a nice atmosphere.”
“Mmm. The weather's nice too!”
Perhaps because it was spring, the scent of flowers drifted through the air everywhere.
We walked past the beautifully maintained gardens and headed toward the lakeside.
While the older members excitedly enjoyed the long-awaited trip, I lazily followed behind.
Seo Haim smiled brightly and poked me in the side.
“What do you think? It's so relaxing, isn't it? Maybe we should've traveled more often.”
Jin Sehyun answered instead.
“Come to think of it, we've never really gone on a proper trip, have we?”
“I don't think so. Other than filming....”
After our debut, we'd never had the luxury.
We made comebacks two or three times a year.
Even during breaks, there were self-content shoots, livestreams... there were hardly any days without schedules.
It was a little funny that only after crash-landing in Canada did we finally get a real chance to relax.
Ah.
We're even filming here too.
Holding the heavy camera in one hand, Cha Seongbin muttered seriously.
“Hmm. What kind of content could we make here?”
“How about jump rope over on that lawn? We could do a sports day concept!”
“I think that's taking it a little too far.”
Jin Sehyun quietly delivered the cold, hard truth.
“I thought we came here to rest.”
“We can do both~.”
When you really think about it, those hyungs are complete workaholics too....
Clicking my tongue, I let out a short sigh.
“I don't think any of you know how to relax.”
“......”
“Ghk. Why are you looking at me like that?”
Jin Sehyun stared at me knowingly, making me clear my throat.
With a faint smile, he replied,
“You're one to talk.”
“Hm?”
“The person here who doesn't know how to relax the most is you. You should take a break before saying that.”
“Exactly.”
Cha Seongbin chimed in.
“This hyung agrees with that with all his heart~.”
Resting his hands on his hips, Cha Seongbin smiled.
“You keep running like someone who's going to die tomorrow. We've still got a long way to go, you know? We're only in our third year.”
“For a third-year group, we've definitely been running like crazy.”
Was it really that obvious?
His words struck a nerve, leaving me standing there awkwardly.
He simply shrugged.
“You should do everything you want while you're still young! And when you get a chance to rest like this, you should actually rest.”
“Says the guy holding a camera...?”
“Ah. I haven't been filming~.”
Cha Seongbin's eyes still sparkled with lingering attachment to getting more footage.
It was an ironic sight, but I couldn't simply laugh it off.
Because he wasn't wrong.
I'd really been running straight ahead like a racehorse.
Yeah.
Taking a break every now and then wasn't such a bad idea.
“Then let's rest for a bit bef—”
“Whoa! What's that over there?!”
Cha Seongbin's loud outburst interrupted my thoughts.
After looking around, his gaze locked onto something.
“Looks like they're doing something fun over there!”
By something fun, he meant filming material.
I frowned.
“Hyung, weren't you the one who said we should rest?”
“I don't think this is the time to rest anymore.”
“Huh?”
It looked like a crowd had gathered.
“A busking performance?”
So it really was the Music Garden.
Apparently, it was a park where busking performances were held frequently.
Maybe this was a kind of occupational hazard.
Before I realized it, my feet were already carrying me toward the sound of music.
So that noisy commotion from earlier had been coming from here.
“There's a lot more people than I expected.”
Then—
It wasn't long before I spotted cameras.
Jin Sehyun widened his eyes.
“Huh? They're actually filming something.”
“Maybe they're filming the busking.”
I'd heard they did things like this in Hongdae too.
The kind of content where YouTubers specializing in busking approached random people for impromptu performances.
I quickly surveyed the surroundings.
Judging by how professional the equipment looked, it seemed more like a variety show being filmed by a local broadcasting station.
We hadn't come all the way here just to appear on another country's variety show.
Watching comfortably from the audience should've been enough....
For some reason, I had a bad feeling.
“Hyung... don't tell me.”
Whoosh—
When I turned around, Cha Seongbin had already disappeared.
Having instantly guessed his next move, Jin Sehyun let out a short laugh as he enjoyed the situation.
“Wow. That's some incredible initiative.”
He'd definitely gone to ask Manager Lee Jaeyoon for permission.
Sure enough.
Moments later, Cha Seongbin came running back from afar, making an O with his hand.
Permission granted.
Frowning, I asked again,
“Are you seriously thinking about going up there?”
“It's all experience~.”
“And it'll all become footage.”
“...Well, I can't exactly say you're wrong!”
Ha.
Meanwhile, the host holding a microphone was already scanning the audience for the next participant.
“We're here at Toronto's Music Garden. It's a wonderful place where you can enjoy amazing busking performances! Once again, today we've discovered just how many hidden musicians there are. Is there anyone in the audience who'd like to perform next?”
I couldn't understand every word, but it sounded more or less like that.
And—
Right beside me, Cha Seongbin was looking at me with sparkling eyes.
No—
He'd even started waving.
“I want to run away.”
Please pick me.
I want to unleash all this overflowing talent on stage.
“Hyung, please.”
“Over here! Here!”
Naturally, the MC on stage didn't miss Cha Seongbin's enthusiastic gestures.
Soon enough, his attention turned toward us.
“Over there!”
The MC shouted loudly into the microphone.
“There are some handsome Asian guys over there. Where are you all from?”
Damn it.
I immediately looked away, pretending not to know Cha Seongbin.
Meanwhile, he answered with a bright smile.
“We're from Korea.”
“Hello! I'm from Korea!!”
Seo Haim went even further.
He bounced up and down with such enthusiastic reactions that the MC burst into hearty laughter.
My ears burned red as I muttered quietly,
“They're entertainers through and through...”
“Seohan, you're an entertainer too.”
“I don't know about that. Today I kind of want to be an ordinary person.”
I really hadn't wanted to busk after coming all the way to another country!
Besides, I wasn't even in my best condition.
Honestly, I wanted to abandon my members and run away....
But Universe Dust's friendship was unnecessarily strong.
“Shine bright! Hello, we're Stardust!”
“Wow, that's a cool greeting.”
In the end, we even gave our official introduction as we confidently stepped forward.
From where I was standing, everyone looked like they were enjoying this...!
“Seohan, are you embarrassed?”
“A little?”
I doubted there would be many fans in Canada who recognized us.
Even so, I couldn't help feeling embarrassed.
With his fluent English, Cha Seongbin handled the interview.
“Are you idols?”
Cha Seongbin nodded.
“We're K-pop idols.”
Seo Haim proudly added,
“Famous super Idol!”
What on earth is Choco Haim saying?
I seriously want to run away....
“Woooooo!”
“Aaaaaah!”
Cheers erupted from every direction.
Apparently, Seo Haim's outrageous declaration came across as adorably charming.
“They're handsome. They said they're famous K-pop idols.”
“I think I've seen them somewhere!”
“Are all Korean people that handsome? I saw it in a drama!”
The MC smiled warmly before handing over the microphone.
Unfortunately, I was the one who ended up receiving it.
“Do you have something you're confident in?”
“Yes.”
Now that I'd come all the way up here, backing out wasn't an option.
Holding the microphone, I opened my mouth.
“Recently I've been practicing whee—”
—Before I could finish, Cha Seongbin shook his head frantically.
Reading the room, I smiled.
“Not that. I'm actually good at beatboxing.”
“Could you show us?”
“I'll do it right now.”
“Woooooo!”
The confident answer immediately drew loud cheers.
Leader Kang Siwoo grinned and added,
“This is Stardust's Every summer.”
And just like that, our impromptu busking performance in Toronto began.
Without exaggeration, Stardust was an idol group that excelled at live performances.
Otherwise, we never would've casually stepped onto such a high-risk live stage.
It was a completely impromptu live performance.
We had performed at a few poorly equipped local festivals before, but performing right out on the street was on an entirely different level.
The microphone quality was poor.
Naturally, there were no in-ear monitors.
We hadn't even rehearsed together beforehand.
Even so, we chose <Every summer>.
It was a song that had once charted on Billboard.
There were probably at least a few people here who recognized it.
The only difference from our usual performances was that we focused more on the vocals than the choreography.
Gripping the microphone tightly, I laid down the beat.
I hadn't practiced this for today.
Since I couldn't exactly use my Cicada Impression as a talent every time, I'd specially learned beatboxing from a professional instructor at the company....
And now I was performing it publicly for the very first time at a completely unexpected moment.
Tutuk.
The familiar main beat of <Every summer> echoed together with the MR.
Boom.
Boom.
I started with the most basic rhythm before layering additional sounds on top.
Gasps of amazement erupted behind us at the intricate beat.
Then it became Seo Ian's turn to fill in the music with the opening verse.
Every summer
Every summer
I fly away above the horizon
It's a little far, but I can still reach it
Seo Ian's gentle voice settled perfectly over the beat.
His bright, refreshing tone truly sounded as though it had been born for this song.
He was our main vocalist, one we could proudly show off anywhere.
Next came Kang Siwoo's stable rap.
The summer we've spent together
That blazing summer
When I see the morning sunlight, my heart races
If you're coming, I feel like I'll go crazy from 7 a.m.
I raised my head and looked at the audience.
Perhaps they knew the song.
Quite a few had been bobbing their heads along from the very beginning.
Seeing satisfied smiles appear on their faces, I found myself smiling too.
A warm summer song that perfectly suited Toronto's Music Garden.
Finally—
Jin Sehyun delivered a flawless high note.
Remember every one of those summers
Every summer
For a stage thrown together on the spot, it was an impeccable ending.
.
.
.
.
They called it the butterfly effect.
The tiny flutter of a butterfly's wings caused by our plane's crash landing returned as a storm none of us had ever anticipated.