“Nice to meet you~ Nice to meet you~ Ah, how long has it been~”
Was this how Prince Suyang felt?
The moment I entered the waiting room with great dignity, everyone’s attention focused on me.
Like true rookies, the new Ailli members sprang to their feet with nervous expressions.
“Oh~ Our former maknae~”
As Hana unni came over warmly,
‘But “former maknae” is a little sad...’
Yea-eun unni suddenly headed toward the vanity.
Then she pointed at her own face for the staff.
“Uh, unni, I think my makeup came off...!”
“Really? Hmm... It looks fine to me?”
“I-I... I was sweating, so the cover...!?”
I decided to ignore it for now.
“Dohee-aa...!”
I handed a bouquet to Sera unni, who came running at me with her arms outstretched.
There were plenty of people I was meeting for the first time, and there was such a thing as etiquette.
“Congratulations on Ailli’s debut~”
First impressions were important.
When I turned around and looked at Ju Seungbin, he politely held out a strawberry latte with both hands to Ailli’s manager.
“Congratulations on your debut. I didn’t buy this myself—it was Dohee...”
There was enough for every member of Ailli’s staff to have a drink.
“Ah, thank you. We’ll enjoy it.”
For a moment, Sera unni’s eyes narrowed slightly as she breathed in the fragrant scent of the bouquet.
“Y-You two speak informally to each other...?”
“Who? Me and Seungbin?”
Sera unni nodded.
“Well, we can.”
Sera unni looked shocked.
‘Is that really so strange?’
Come to think of it, considering how things had been during Saven, it made sense.
Back then, I’d developed a trauma because of the elementary and middle school boys who confessed to me whenever we exchanged even a few words, so I’d always avoided boys on sight.
Quite a few people had actually asked for my number, too.
But when I went to high school, there weren’t any of them at school.
Well, in the first place, Seungbin was a coworker. Wouldn’t it be stranger to put up walls between us?
It wasn’t as though I was particularly uncomfortable around boys.
In the meantime, perhaps sensing the atmosphere, Ju Seungbin bowed politely and stepped away.
“Um, call me later when you’re doing the challenge.”
“Sure.”
I greeted the manager and then faced the others, whom I hadn’t been able to pay attention to because Sera unni had attached herself to me.
Of course, before that, I covered my eyes with two fingers and then pointed at Yea-eun unni.
Even while receiving a makeup touch-up from the hair-and-makeup artist, Yea-eun unni kept sneaking glances at me, and her pupils trembled.
My rough thoughts.
My anxious gaze, and Yea-eun unni watching it all.
I’d have to take her to the bathroom later.
“Dohee~”
First, I gave Hana unni a big hug.
“Hana unni, congratulations on your debut~”
“Oh my, Dohee, saying something so thoughtful...?”
Hana unni pretended to wipe away a tear, as if deeply moved.
“It makes me feel like raising you was worth it...”
I was naturally thoughtful, though.
“Still, ‘former maknae’ is a little sad.”
“Then shall I call you our baby?”
“Ooh, maybe not that.”
I felt a shock from behind.
Sera unni had set the bouquet down gently on the sofa and come running back to cling to me from behind.
“M-Me too!”
“Okay, okay, you too. Come here.”
Thinking of how hard the unnies must have worked preparing for their debut, my heart grew merciful.
Of course, except for Yea-eun unni over there.
After exchanging hugs of reunion,
I faced the two new members who stood a little awkwardly apart from everyone else.
I spoke first to the girl named Miho.
Hadn’t they said she was the same age as Yea-eun unni?
Just like her name suggested, she had something of a fox-like look. I bet she’d be popular.
“Congratulations on your debut~ The song was so good that I stayed up streaming it all night yesterday, you know?”
“Oh, really? Thank you! I still listen to your songs from your Saven days all the time, too! They’re totally on my playlist. You’re my number one pick, Dohee sunbaenim!”
Hana unni had been watching fondly, but now her expression hardened.
“What? You said I was your number one pick.”
Miho scratched her face slightly, realizing her mistake.
“Uh... You’re both my number one picks...?”
Yea-eun unni, who had been touching up her makeup, suddenly turned her head with an aggrieved expression.
“Yoo Mihyeon, you... You told Hana unni not to say that I was actually your number one pick, too!”
“D-Did I...?”
This probably wasn’t the time for Yea-eun unni to feel wronged.
When her eyes met mine, she pretended not to see me and stared at the mirror again.
“Unni, h-here...! I think your mascara smudged a little here, too...!”
“Does it?”
‘I’ll make sure to smudge her mascara for real later.’
I needed to finish up quickly and take that Park Yea-eun away.
So I changed the subject by speaking to the troubled-looking Miho.
“Come on, Miho. Don’t call me sunbaenim so stiffly. We debuted later than you, anyway. Let’s just be unnies and dongsaengs.”
“Oh, really~?”
“Of course. We’re both members of Hana Club Ace, after all. Hana unni told me over KakaoTalk how you were absolutely the best in the practice room. She praised you so much.”
“Hana unni, really~?”
Miho looked at Hana unni with an innocent, fluttering expression.
Hana unni, on the other hand, folded her arms and turned her head away with a sniff.
“No? Miho, who wags her tail at everyone, has never once been the best in my eyes.”
Good grief, what a narrow-minded woman.
While Miho clung to Hana unni and tried to soothe her,
Ailli’s new maknae, sixteen-year-old Bomi, was standing there shyly, looking at me with admiration.
“As for me... I-I didn’t just say it carelessly like Miho unni, going around telling everyone... You really, truly were my number one pick, Dohee sunbaenim...!”
“Really?”
“Y-Yes...! I fell for you at first sight when the performance video was released at the very beginning...! Ah, not unni... Sunbaenim...!”
Unni...?
“Bomi, do you want to exchange numbers with me?”
“I-Is that really okay...?”
Bomi looked up at me with shyly flushed cheeks.
“Of course.”
Cute as she was, our Doa was still cuter...
Naturally, our Doa was the most lovable and the prettiest, and I wanted to kiss her and everything.
Still, sometimes I wished she would act shy around me like this chick and express her affection...
More importantly, Sera unni’s arms, which were still wrapped around my back, seemed to have grown strangely stronger.
“Uh, unni, I can’t breathe...”
* * *
All of Saven’s fans had entered the SBC broadcast channel and were watching intently.
─Watch the live broadcast ㄱㄱ
They had no choice.
They often heard stories about which Saven members had met up and hung out together,
but not once had anything been revealed in a photo or video.
So today’s live broadcast of Yuhaenggayo and its interview weren’t merely their first official appearance together—they were also the first actual footage of them.
After an emotional performance by a ballad singer ended, Yuhaenggayo’s two MCs appeared on-screen.
The live broadcast had passed its midpoint, and it was almost time to introduce the stages that had drawn the most attention.
Dohee hugged her arms as though she were cold.
[It’s already winter... The weather is so cold. Isn’t it, Seungbin?]
[No? I’m absolutely boiling.]
Dohee nodded and shrugged.
[Ah~ Could it be because of my fiery pas.sion?]
[What? No. It’s thanks to the girls who have been causing an enormous stir since before their debut.]
─The Yu-ga writer has really loved scripts like this since last time lol
─Dohee’s ears are red again lol
─I think it’s because of the rabbit’s hot ears~
[Who could they be?]
[It’s none other than~ Ailli, the complete girl group that will change the course of K-pop!]
The two MCs naturally moved apart, revealing the Ailli members who had been partially hidden behind them.
[Hello, we’re Ailli~!]
[Ailli is even more delightful to see with some familiar faces mixed in! How do you feel about standing on your debut stage?]
Dohee and the Saven members exchanged a warm interview.
─Ha ㅠㅠ To think this group had to disband
─Saven’s visual combination was truly legendary...ㅠㅠ
─I wish they’d perform together just once more ㅠㅠ
As they watched, the fans filled the live chat with countless “ㅠ”s.
And those emotions didn’t end there. They continued to build, one by one, in the MC cut uploaded several hours later.
[November Week 3 “Dohee X Seungbin” MC Cut Compilation #Yuhaenggayo #Yuhaenggayo | SBC NOW]
The video cropped together scenes from the live broadcast, including the moment they left after the interview.
It showed Dohee holding Yea-eun’s hand as she left after the interview, and Dohee and Hana gazing warmly into each other’s eyes.
It also showed Sera, who had apparently decided that since Dohee had held Yea-eun’s hand, she should hold hers too, stopping on her way out to clasp Dohee’s hand wistfully.
─The girls are so close ㅠㅠ...
And the moment the fans’ wistful emotions finally reached their peak was—
@illli
#BaekyaChallenge
#LEEDOHEE
#JUSEUNGBIN
The “Baekya” challenge uploaded to Ailli’s official YouTube channel, featuring the MCs.
[Sometimes it may seem like a dark night
But together, we’ll smile as if in a dream
I’ll shine only on you, a light in the darkness
I’ll always wrap you in my arms]
The most captivating chorus.
Dohee earnestly followed Ailli’s bright yet pure and wistful choreography, as though she had prepared it like a dance from her own group, even mouthing along to the lyrics.
It reminded people of the time they had once stood onstage together, moving some to wipe away tears as they longed for those memories.
* * *
Ju Seungbin returned to the dorm and lay down on his bed, checking the videos he appeared in.
From the interview cam to the various challenges.
Today’s interview cut had garnered especially high views.
─Do I miss who I was back then... or do I miss Saven...
└Both...
─My Saven-U heart is crying right now...
─ってるのが嬉しすぎて泣く
As he read the sobbing comments in languages from around the world, Ju Seungbin recalled what had happened earlier that day.
─Knock knock
Along with the knock on the waiting-room door,
─Come out~
He heard Lee Dohee’s strange voice from outside.
Ju Seungbin had chuckled and gotten up for the challenge.
When he stepped outside, what he saw was...
“What are you doing...?”
Lee Dohee riding piggyback on Park Yea-eun, who was huffing and puffing.
Park Yea-eun was probably a year younger than him.
That made her Dohee’s unni.
She was perfectly capable of finding Dohee cute.
But this didn’t seem to be one of those situations.
Lee Dohee climbed down from Park Yea-eun’s back.
“Is our unni taking care of me because I’m cute?”
Lee Dohee slung an arm around Park Yea-eun’s shoulders.
Standing side by side with Park Yea-eun, who looked to be in the low 160s,
Lee Dohee’s height, well over 170 centimeters, stood out even more.
“Unni, who am I?”
Park Yea-eun had nodded vigorously and answered.
“A genius eternal idol! Saven’s center! The visual member!”
“Okay! Let’s go film the challenge!”
Seemingly satisfied, Lee Dohee clapped and headed toward the challenge spot.
While Lee Dohee’s head was turned away, Park Yea-eun muttered,
“Idiot...”
“What?”
“N-No, nothing!”
When Lee Dohee turned back and began humming, then bounced toward the challenge spot like a child, Park Yea-eun poked Ju Seungbin.
“Yes?”
When he turned to look at Park Yea-eun, she was pointing at Lee Dohee.
Then she brought her hand to her temple and spun it around in circles.
It was the usual hand gesture for saying that someone was crazy.
“Ah, I see.”
“Unni~ Come on~ Sera unni and Hana unni are waiting~”
“O-Okay!”
Maybe that was why all the wistful comments beneath today’s interview-cam video didn’t quite resonate with him.
‘Four dollah.’
‘What are you talking about? I said I was going to buy strawberry latte.’