Survive! Foolish Bottom!

 ????Yuri @sonyuri011

You can tell just by their gaze, LOL. Jaewoon nim looks kind and outgoing, while that Park Ha guy gives off vibes of having a bad personality. Usually, people who pretend to be nice like that are the ones who are rude behind the scenes.

RT ┃ Quote ┃ ♡ 49

 

“Ugh, seriously, this is absurd.”

 

The hand holding Park Haeun’s phone trembled. The malicious glint in Lee Jaewoon’s eyes and his sneering, villain-like voice she had heard in the restroom seemed to replay automatically in his head. And yet, people were saying,

what?

That he looks kind and outgoing? If being blind to this extent isn’t criminal, then what is?

 

The problem was that there weren’t just one or two people who couldn’t see through him.

 

Haeun pressed the lock button, turning off his phone screen, and looked at his reflection in the black surface of the screen. His gentle and somewhat naïve features were definitely a drawback, but still—compared to someone like Lee Jaewoon, he looked a million times kinder.

 

So why was it only Park Haeun who was being torn apart by criticism? Being unpopular and unknown was already painful enough, but now he had to endure this kind of humiliation because of it? The anger surged again. Just the thought of Lee Jaewoon walking around with his brazen face made him grind his teeth.

 

However, the way Haeun trembled with rage seemed to come across differently to those around him. Maybe it was because his head was lowered, hiding his expression, or because of his gentle and naïve-looking face that gave off an air of kindness. Whatever the reason, everyone seemed to think Haeun had been deeply hurt.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Why did you even bother looking that up? Just ignore it! They don’t even know what they’re talking about.”

 

“Exactly. It just ruins your mood for no reason.”

 

The concerned tone of their words made Haeun, who had been fuming with anger just moments ago, feel a little embarrassed. To avoid breaking the mood, he cleared his throat and pretended to be genuinely hurt.

 

After a few more words of consolation, Ilhyun cautiously asked,

“So, what exactly happened?”

 

The CEO and Director Kim had sent the others out so they could hold a meeting, leaving only the team together now. It was a tricky situation to bring up in front of the CEO, but Haeun wondered if he should explain it to her members.

 

After a moment of hesitation, he gave them a brief explanation of what had happened.

 

Junwoo, clicking his tongue in disapproval, was the first to react, lamenting Haeun’s foolishness.

 

“How do you even end up fighting about something without realizing the person you’re talking about is listening?”

 

“Hey, that’s not—!”

 『A professional idol doesn’t snap at their members while making excuses! ヾ(≧皿≦ﾒ)』 

The system cut Haeun off mid-sentence, leaving him frustrated so he turned his head away from Jun-woo in annoyance.

 

Luckily, Seongjae, who had been deep in thought, spoke up, interrupting Junwoo.

 

“Why don’t we just release the recording? That’s the quickest way to settle this, isn’t it?”

 

“Yeah, exactly.”

 

“I get that you kept quiet since the person involved didn’t want to stir things up, but after everything’s blown up like this, is there any point in holding back for their sake?”

 

It was a cold and rational remark. In truth, Haeun himself hadn’t entirely dismissed the idea of

“Maybe I should just release the recording.”

while reading through the insults directed at him moments ago. But there was a catch that

made him hesitant.

 

“Uh… but the thing is, I might’ve said a few things back during that, uh, exchange… If we’re going to release it, we’d need to cut out that part first.”

 

If the latter part of the recording got out, it would put Haeun in an awkward position. To be honest, he didn’t even want his teammates to know exactly what he had said to Lee Jaewoon during their fight in the bathroom. If it got out, his likability would plummet.

 

When Haeun trailed off with a vague excuse, Sungjae muttered in disbelief.

 

“What did you go and say this time?”

 

“…”

 

Haeun turned away from Seongjae as well. That’s when Ilhyun, who had been calmly listening, spoke up.

 

“So you’re saying Kim Gyowon ssi doesn’t seem inclined to do anything about this himself?”

 

While everyone was casually throwing around Kim Gyowon’s name, Ilhyun was the only one who still maintained a respectful tone. Haeun nodded in response.

 

“Yeah. He said he’s not going to do anything. I thought he meant he wouldn’t do anything to me, but it looks like he doesn’t plan to do anything about Lee Jaewoon either.”

 

“Is there no chance Kim Gyowon ssi’s side leaked the article?”

 

Despite his respectful address, the content of Ilhyun’s words was decidedly negative. Haeun wasn’t particularly surprised, as it wasn’t an entirely outlandish idea. He hesitated for a moment, then answered smoothly.

 

“I’m not really sure about that, either.”

 

The fact that there had been tension was something only Kim Gyowon, Haeun, and Lee Jaewoon knew about. It seemed unlikely that Lee Jaewoon, who had plenty to lose, would have let anything slip, and since Haeun had no idea either, there was still a chance it could have been Kim Gyowon. 

 

Then again, considering how loudly the argument had been, a third party might have overheard. Still, it wasn’t a possibility they could ignore.

 

“This is turning into a headache…”

 

Ilhyun muttered quietly. Seongjae, who had been silently listening, ruffled his hair in frustration. His voice was sharp as he posed a question

 

“What’s the problem, exactly?”

 

It wasn’t Ilhyun who answered but Junwoo instead. Half-perched on the edge of a nearby table, Junwoo shrugged lightly before speaking.

 

“Well, hypothetically, if Kim Gyowon is keeping quiet because he has some ulterior motive, then if we release the recording first, it could backfire on us. Right?”

 

“That’s about right.”

 

Ilhyun nodded calmly. Haeun scratched his cheek awkwardly, feeling unsure. 

 

That doesn’t seem like the case…

 

But voicing his thoughts now would probably only invite criticism, so he decided to stay quiet. Seongjae, meanwhile, looked entirely bewildered.

 

“Kim Gyowon apparently recorded it too. What if we release the recording, and out of spite, he releases the parts we cut out? Then what?”

 

“Aren’t you overthinking this?”

 

Seongjae frowned as he spoke. Haeun silently agreed but couldn’t shake off a nagging concern about the scenario Junwoo described.

 

“I don’t think Kim Gyowon would go that far either. It’d be a real mess if Jaewoon had a recording too, but fortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

 

In truth, Haeun had never thought about the situation in such complicated terms. 

 

His concerns were simpler:

If I end up releasing the recording, I’ll need to edit out the parts where I said something harsh. But what if that gets me on Kim Gyowon’s bad side? My popularity is already in the negatives.

That was the extent of it.

 

Yet, his groupmates seemed to be analyzing the situation on a much deeper level. Was it because they understood the entertainment industry better than he did? Or were they just naturally more quick-witted?

 

As Haeun mulled this over, Junwoo shook his head and addressed him.

 

“Why’d you even say something you can’t let people hear? Did you cuss him out or something? If you’d just done what you’re good at—crying—it would’ve been perfect for some PR spin.”

 

Apparently, Junwoo still hadn’t let go of the time Haeun cried.

So petty,

Haeun thought with a silent grumble. However, since his own actions were partly to blame for the current mess, he didn’t say anything in return.

 

Despite Junwoo’s snide remarks toward Haeun, he immediately quieted down when Ilhyun scolded him with a serious tone.

 

“Junwoo yah.”

 

“Yeah, sorry.”

 

Haeun found it a bit irritating how Junwoo could freely throw cutting words at him but would zip his mouth the moment Ilhyun spoke up. As Haeun glared at Junwoo, their eyes met. Junwoo’s eyes curved into a sly smile. It was annoying, yet his expression made it hard to pick a fight.

 

“Even without things escalating to that point, there’s no way this’ll be risk-free. The Gloomy fandom is huge, so no matter what we say, we’ll still catch flak.”

 

“That fandom is absolutely rabid. They’ll either insist it’s fake, make excuses about extenuating circumstances, or just hurl insults without even thinking. And there’s a lot of people like that.”

 

Seongjae, looking very frustrated, pressed his fingers to his temple as he listened to Ilhyun and Junwoo riff off each other.

 

“

Ugh…

..this is infuriating. So what’s the plan? Sure, they’ll throw a fit, but couldn’t we turn public opinion around with enough effort? Are you saying we just leave things as they are?”

 

Ilhyun replied calmly.

 

“The production meeting for ‘Tomorrow’s Superstar’

 is tomorrow. It’s too tricky to do anything right now. The schedule won’t change, and you can’t skip the meeting over something like this.”

 

Haeun had been so preoccupied with the drama that he’d completely forgotten about that show.

The meeting is tomorrow?

 

 

Caught off guard, he quickly adjusted his expression. In the meantime, Seongjae’s frustration seemed to simmer down slightly.

 

“Seriously… why does crap like this always blow up at the worst times?”

 

“When’s your next drama shoot?” 

 

Ilhyun asked, turning his gaze toward Haeun. The question sounded casual, as if it naturally fit into the conversation.

 

“Ah, three days from now.”

 

“Then talk to Kim Gyowon directly when you see him. You’ll probably get some kind of answer.”

 

Ilhyun ran a hand through his hair, looking more fatigued than usual. Seeing someone so typically calm and composed wear his exhaustion so plainly was a bit unsettling.

 

“For now, that’s probably the best course of action.”

 

***

 

With nothing left to discuss, they all piled into the car to return to the dorm. However, as they approached, it became clear that there were more people outside the dorm than usual. While it wasn’t uncommon for sasaeng fans to linger nearby, something about today’s scene felt different.

 

Peering out the window with a serious expression, Ilhyun stepped out of the car and muttered under his breath.

 

Nothing happened.

 

Haeun slowly opened his eyes, unsure of what to expect. In front of him stood Seongjae, his broad back shielding Haeun from whatever had been thrown. Something dripped onto the ground from Seongjae’s arm, and the sharp smell of raw eggs wafted through the air.

 

“Are you okay?” 

 

Seongjae asked, glancing over his shoulder at Haeun. His voice was calm, almost eerily so.

 

Haeun’s lips moved, but no words came out. He could only nod stiffly.

 

The manager, who had been just as caught off guard, quickly stepped between the members and the crowd. 

 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” 

 

He shouted at the group, his voice rising in uncharacteristic anger.

 

The person who had thrown the egg was already lost in the confusion, and others in the crowd began to scatter. Meanwhile, Ilhyun quickly pulled Haeun back toward the entrance.

 

“Let’s get inside first.”

 

As they moved, Seongjae trailed behind, brushing bits of shell off his arm. His calm demeanor didn’t waver, but the clenched jaw and tight grip on his sleeve revealed his irritation.

 

Haeun stole a glance at Seongjae and felt a pang of guilt. 

 

“…Sorry.”

 

Seongjae didn’t answer immediately. Finally, he let out a small sigh and gave Haeun a half-smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. 

 

“Just don’t apologize for stuff like this. It’s not like you threw it yourself.”

 

Even though the words were meant to comfort, they only made Haeun feel worse.

 

But something felt off. There had clearly been a

thud

sound, yet he didn’t feel a thing.

 

Haeun slowly opened his eyes. Right in front of him was the logo on a lightweight windbreaker—a leaping leopard with its mouth wide open. Haeun stared at it blankly, his thoughts hazy.

 

“This is Seongjae’s jacket.”

 

At the same time, Junwoo’s voice rang out sharply.

 

“Hyung!”

 

“It’s nothing. Just an egg.”

 

Haeun had expected Seongjae to lash out or show some kind of emotional reaction, but instead, he replied calmly. Apparently, the egg had hit the arm Seongjae had raised to shield Haeun. Broken egg dripped from his sleeve as Seongjae inspected it briefly before turning his head toward Haeun.

 

“You okay?”

 

“Huh?”

 『Seongjae’s Favorability has increased by 3! Σ(lliдﾟﾉ)ﾉ』 

Haeun shared the system’s surprise.

Why would shielding me from an egg raise his affection level?

If it were the other way around—if the affection had gone up

before

he stepped in—it would make more sense. Feeling flustered, Haeun fumbled for a proper response, though the system wasn’t prompting him to do so.

 

Unbothered by Haeun’s awkwardness, Seongjae simply checked again, his egg-covered arm dripping onto the ground.

 

“I asked if you’re okay.”

 

What’s with this guy? Whether Haeun was flustered or not, Seongjae maintained steady eye contact, persistently waiting for an answer.

Gosh. I hate those types of fans so much.