Chapter 5
“And he was discharged last month.”
At Junyoung’s words as he pointed at Minhun, this time Yoon Jin showed a genuinely surprised expression. He thought that he and Junyoung had enlisted relatively early for idols, but for someone of Minhun’s age, going to the military seemed like such a waste. Wasn’t that saying an idol had thrown away his mid-twenties to the military?
“Then, the other kids…”
If there had been no changes to the members, the remaining two would be twenty-four and twenty-three years old. Unless there was a problem with the group, going to the military at that age was unheard of in the entertainment industry.
“Kwon and Domin? They haven’t gone yet. They released a few albums while we were away, right?”
“Two in Korea, two in Japan.”
“Right, right. They had quite a busy time while we were away.”
Minhun, who had composed his expression by now, sat next to Yoon Jin and joined the conversation. Somehow, Yoon Jin ended up looking silly, sandwiched between Junyoung and Minhun, just holding a spoon. The sense of distance between those two was much closer than Yoon Jin had expected.
While he was used to women being this close, he rarely had such close distance with men except when fighting with knives, so Yoon Jin hunched his body a bit.
“Um… Minhun went to the military early, huh?”
“You fought with the agency to get permission for us. You told us we needed to rest.”
“I did?”
“Yes, you did.”
Minhun looked intently at Yoon Jin with his chin resting on his hand. Whether he was thinking about the past or not, his eyes were full of inexplicable affection. Uncomfortable with that gaze, Yoon Jin looked in the opposite direction, but since Junyoung’s expression wasn’t much different, he quietly fixed his gaze on the cooling porridge.
“Do you remember listening to all our worries?”
“Vaguely…?”
Of course, since the ‘Yoon Jin’ back then was someone else, he couldn’t possibly remember. But there was no need to object to a story being shared with such preciousness, so he quietly nodded.
Minhun’s story continued. After debuting as Sparkle, they worked without a day’s rest, traveling between Korea, Japan, and several other countries, and after about 5 years, they reached their limit. Singing was no longer enjoyable, and dancing became extremely painful.
Meanwhile, the agency debuted another group, and all attention shifted there. It was the industry trend for a 5-year-old idol group to not receive proper care once juniors arrived.
“And then you suddenly suggested we go to the military, I was so surprised.”
“Yeah, I thought Jin hyung was trying to make me retire.”
Just hearing that much, Yoon Jin understood the entire situation. Having debuted at too young an age and worked without rest, they needed a reset, and the ‘William’ inside ‘Yoon Jin’ brought up military enlistment as the most effective method.
Since Yoon Jin had also worried a lot about maintaining morale among knights on the battlefield, it wasn’t a method he couldn’t understand at all. He was just a bit surprised that ‘William’s’ feelings toward the members were beyond Yoon Jin’s expectations.
At that moment, Junyoung naturally rested his forehead on Yoon Jin’s shoulder and took the spoon he was holding, placing it aside.
“It was the first time I saw you fighting with the CEO like that~”
“Honestly, Junyoung hyung and I were worried that if we went to the military already, the fans would leave… but you said it would be fine.”
This time, Minhun took Yoon Jin’s hand. They seemed so accustomed to physical contact with ‘Yoon Jin’ that both of them didn’t seem to be doing it consciously. Of course, for the current Yoon Jin, it was a burden itself. During their trainee days, hadn’t they been busy fighting whenever they had the chance?
“You said everyone would wait for us… so we went, whatever. It actually suited me pretty well.”
“It’s a good place to organize your thoughts since you just do what you’re told without thinking.”
“I see.”
I wish both of you would just back off now. With that thought, Yoon Jin subtly pulled out his captured hand, but unconsciously, his body automatically patted their heads. Even though it was his own body, it moved so naturally that Yoon Jin only realized it after the action had already been done.
‘Crazy. They’re not puppies, how much did I pat them for my body to remember this?’
It was like when the etiquette ingrained in William’s body had unconsciously emerged after being possessed. Of course, unlike then, it was a completely useless help now. Whatever made them so happy, the two who received Yoon Jin’s touch smiled brightly.
* * *
【Title: JFCQ finally posted a notice】
(Photo)
I was surprised once by their very fast response, finally posting a notice now,
Surprised twice by the level of “it’s just the flu so don’t worry” message,
And surprised three times by the clueless conclusion saying the birthday party W Live schedule will proceed as planned, so don’t worry, you fucking bastards
===
─ When did the article about his collapse come out and they’re only giving notice now???? Why do they get paid, that salary comes out of our pockets ㅋㅋㅋ Do your job ㅋㅋㅋ
└ Is it true that all the early leavers gather at JFCQ??
└ A company that cares more about their own clock-out than artist management smh
─ Who was worried about the W Live being canceled? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ We were only curious if Jin was okay, but the notice is truly garbage. We’d prefer our baby to rest if he’s sick;;; In the first place, I don’t trust the flu excuse at all
└ Meanwhile the English version of the notice is more thoughtful.
└ (Comment deleted)
└ Disease-mongering ban
└ I’m not criticizing, but first the notice was extremely late, and then they say he fainted from the flu? That’s suspicious from the beginning, implying they neglected him until he fainted. It’s a fact that the company isn’t doing its job, so why are you muddying the waters;;;
└ Disease-mongering ban
└ Disease-mongering ban TY
─ Picture of how to write a reasonably normal notice
└ Comment meaning “I’m reasonably fucking pissed off”
─ About the late notice… okay, they might be busy so processing might be slow… flu… okay, someone could faint because of the flu… the company not knowing about the artist’s physical condition until he collapsed… let’s assume they couldn’t know… But in this situation, did they really have to say the schedule would proceed normally???
└ Seriously ㅜㅜ If they had just said “Schedules might change depending on his condition” that one sentence would have made us think they are at least trying to take care of our Jin oppa ㅜㅜ!!
└ JFCQ needs to make money…
【Title: Today’s Japan ‘Asadayo’ broadcast clip of K and Domin mentioning Jin】
(Video)
MC: I heard Jin-ssi collapsed due to the flu, is he okay?
Domin: Ah….. ( ,_, )
K: Yes, we heard he’s resting well at the dorm now. ^^ We haven’t been able to visit yet because our schedule is still busy. But we’re in frequent contact via KakaoTalk.
Domin: Since Jin hyung lives alone in the dorm, Minhun hyung has also temporarily moved back to the dorm.
MC: Ah~ Is this the famous sons’ love for their mother?
K: Well, I guess so ㅎㅎ
Domin: ……
This is roughly the conversation when translated from Japanese.
What about Dongdong’s gloomy expression when talking about Jin Mommy… my heart is breaking, really…
===
─ Our baby ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ He must be upset that he can’t go see his mom when she’s sick ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Look at his puckered lips ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Our baby is only 23 months old so he needs to be with his mom ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
─ Is it true that Minhun moved back to the dorm?? I was already suspicious about Jin collapsing due to the flu, and now I’m even more suspicious…
└ Agreed. A younger member who just got discharged moves back to the dorm because the leader caught the flu…?
└ I can understand it because it’s Minhun
└ If it’s Choi Minhun, the #1 Mom-obsessed, then it’s possible
└ Whatever, I’m a bit relieved that at least Hunhuni is there with him ㅠ
└ Let the kids come back to Korea even for a moment… both of their faces are full of worry…
└ At this point, they’re Japanese idols who are only Korean by nationality
─ Has Jin still not posted anything on OnStar or Bubble? I’m worried ㅠ
└ Yeah, nothing’s been posted
└ Not getting Jin Mommy’s morning greetings, I’m dying of depression every day
└ If I had known this would happen, I should have saved my bubbles… I used all 3 so I can’t even send more ㅠㅠ
─ Look at Kwon K trying to manage his expression, being a year older than Dongdong… he’s so cute…
└ But he couldn’t manage his truth-telling eyebrows.
└ Kwon K, take care of your eyebrows
└ ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
【Title: People who were shocked when “Sparkle Junyoung Desertion” trended in real-time, come in】
Let’s calm down together… I’m really pregnant and thought I was going to lose the baby… A guy with 4 months left until discharge suddenly deserted??? Like this??? I clicked thinking that, but it turned out he just came out on leave… Why suddenly make our child desert? ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
===
─ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋThat ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Jjunie came out on leave the day Jin Mommy collapsed ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ It was fans joking that he deserted to see his mom ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ What a timing ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ Sparkle’s popularity making real-time trends with this
─ I was so surprised when I saw that too ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
─ Our Jjunie… I thought I’d see him soon after waiting a little more… But I almost saw him on a news channel instead of a music show… This noona is getting old and her heart is fluttering…
└ News channel ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ The glamorous news lights surround him… The glamorous reporters’ sound echoes…
* * *
Even if not a fan, Sparkle’s recognition was at a level where most had at least heard the name. Among them, Yoon Jin had a level of recognition among the general public as “Oh, that nice guy?”, in short, he was the idol industry’s uniquely harmless male character.
As a result, when news spread that Yoon Jin had collapsed, not only fans but even people who had no interest began to criticize the agency, and the internet heated up in a short time. How are you managing your idols, why is there still no explanation? From the company’s perspective, it was an unexpected bolt from the blue.
Therefore, the agency concluded this incident as simply the flu, and Yoon Jin also didn’t pay much attention to it.
■ Han Domin (Dongdong)
But a birthday W Live means Jin hyung has to do it alone…
■ Kim Kwon (Kwon)
Hyung. Should I ask if Domin and I can make a brief appearance?? We do have a music show recording at dawn that day… but if we catch the right flights, I think we can make it.
■ Kwon Junyoung (Jjunie)
I won’t be able to use my phone at that time… ㅠ
■ Choi Minhun (Huni)
Don’t make it hard for manager hyung by forcing things, Domin and Kwon!
■ Choi Minhun (Huni)
And don’t worry about the W Live, I’ve arranged to join in the middle
Unlike Yoon Jin, the other members seemed to be dying of concern about this fact, sending messages through the group chat almost every day. This group chat hell began the day after Junyoung came on leave. Yoon Jin’s condition had been relayed to the remaining members, Domin and Kim Kwon, and the agency had told them to contact via text rather than calls for Yoon Jin’s stability.
The first reason was that they didn’t know how much Yoon Jin remembered about Domin and Kim Kwon, and the second reason was that those two seemed like they might fly to Korea at any moment. Meanwhile, if they saw Yoon Jin’s pale face through a video call, the new manager on the Japan side would definitely not be able to stop those two.
■ Han Domin (Dongdong)
I’m saying you probably won’t be much help, hyung!!!
Yoon Jin ■
It’ll be fine ^^
Yoon Jin slowly touched the keyboard and posted a message in the noisy KakaoTalk room. The original names of the members in the group chat were things like Dongdong, Kwon, Huni, Jjunie, so only after adding their real names could Yoon Jin properly read the flow of the chat. Even then, the content was all just concerns with little substance.
“This W Live or whatever… I’m the one doing it, but they’re more worried.”
Although several days had passed since returning to his original body, it was inevitable to feel awkward when receiving affectionate messages from the members. Moreover, Minhun had decided to move back to the dorm until Yoon Jin got better, and was currently steadily moving his belongings. Of course, Yoon Jin’s opinion wasn’t included in the criteria for “better.”
Entering the kitchen, Yoon Jin poured cold water into a cup and moistened his throat. The group chat was becoming a little quieter, perhaps because Domin and Kim Kwon had gone back into filming.
The members seemed to have many complaints about the agency’s decision to proceed with Yoon Jin’s schedule normally despite his memory loss. But even Yoon Jin thought there was no reason to let someone with functioning limbs rest and take a loss, except for the memory loss.
“If we worry about physical condition while working, who will protect the duchy~ When will we make an emperor~”
A song that Yoon Jin used to hum jokingly whenever times were tough while living as William naturally came out of his mouth.
“Don’t worry, Sangu~ I am the strong and scary Duke~ Hmm~”
In the empty dorm, only Yoon Jin’s humming could be heard quietly. Sitting on a chair he had pulled up to the dining table, he pressed his forehead as if annoyed by a sudden short headache. The memory that returned this time was of himself packing a lunch box for Minhun on the day of his college entrance exam.
Since these were the only kinds of memories returning, Yoon Jin even thought it might be fine if his memories didn’t come back at all. He gulped down cold water again.
“Come to think of it, they said to do Bubble or something…”
Sanggu’s voice, sounding very apologetic as he conveyed the agency’s policy and upcoming schedules, replayed in Yoon Jin’s mind. Despite having the same face as Guonnu, his expressive features were a small amusement for Yoon Jin now.
Wondering if he should properly ask Minhun when he returns, Yoon Jin turned on his phone and looked for the app Sanggu had mentioned. Since it was said to be an app for communicating with fans, even if he didn’t do anything right now, it seemed good to look at the information that remained.
When he pressed the purple app labeled “Bubble,” a chat room like a group chat opened, and it was full of messages sent by numerous fans.
“Jin, please just leave a dot…? This is the third one so I can’t even send more…?”
In the chat window, there were many desperate sentences like ‘Just send a single dot.’ Although he had initially planned to just look without doing anything, the posts here overlapped with the image of imperial citizens desperately crying and begging for taxes to be paid, making them seem quite pitiful. Yoon Jin typed a single dot and sent it to the chat.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
