My older sister Seoyoon and I had appeared on various media outlets several times for promotional purposes.
Still, since we were debuting as a group, we absolutely had to appear on a variety show together at least once.
However, we hadn’t had the opportunity until now.
Until yesterday, when the other members—my older sisters—had yet to be revealed, we had to be careful not to spoil anything.
But now all the members had been revealed.
And today, the group trailer was being released.
At last, we set out to film a group variety show in public.
Of course, since the three members besides Seoyoon and me were newcomers, this wasn’t a terrestrial broadcast program that required a strong sense for variety.
It was a modest YouTube web variety show.
“PD-nim~”
“Oh my! Seoyoon, you’ve gotten even prettier!?”
“Hehe, really?”
“I greeted you too…”
“Oh, Dohee is pretty every day~”
It was a YouTube web variety show filmed in the practice room at the company building, a place newcomers were most familiar with. That made it easy to adapt, and it was also easy for the members to show their natural selves.
* * *
During my time with Saven, I had appeared on this program once every comeback, so it was extremely familiar to Seoyoon and me.
But of course, it seemed like Ua and Naeun were nervous, since it was their first time.
The two of them had stiff expressions.
“Whoa...! There are so many cameras!”
‘No problem over here.’
They had every reason to be nervous.
It was a YouTube program, but there were far more cameras and staff than one might expect.
Seoyoon patted Ua on the shoulder with great confidence.
“Ua, there’s nothing to be nervous about. You have me.”
Ua looked at Kim Seoyoon, then let out a deep sigh.
“Whew... Ji Ua, you can do this. Believe in yourself.”
“Ua?”
“Hehe, where is my camera director~~”
I patted Naeun on the shoulder as well.
“Unnie, just think of it as something easy. Remember when we filmed our own content last time?”
Debonair’s self-produced variety content.
At the mention of the group retreat we had gone on a few weeks ago, Naeun nodded.
“I remember, but...”
“It’s no different from then. Just think of it as only us and act comfortably. Were there even fewer cameras back then?”
Even so, there was still no sign of Naeun’s face relaxing.
What on earth was the problem?
“Okay. Unnie, then think back to when we filmed ‘Jeodol.’ There were way more cameras then, but you adapted right away, didn’t you? You know that, right?”
Seoyoon, who had failed to persuade Ua, joined in and thumped her chest.
“Yeah, I told you to trust us, didn’t I? We’re veterans. Veterans.”
But Naeun shook her head again.
“I wasn’t particularly nervous. It’s just...”
“Just?”
Naeun’s eyes darted around, brushing past several of the members.
“Oh...! My camera!? Ah, is that right? Nice to meet you!”
“I’m just worried someone might cause trouble right from the start...”
I was among those she glanced at.
“Ah, no, I really, really trust Dohee, unnie... You know that, right? Right? Yeah...?”
Huh.
* * *
The news that Top East’s new girl group, which included Seoyoon and Dohee, was launching had already spread all over the internet through several promotional strategies.
And thanks to that, countless K-pop fans at home and abroad—
as well as the general public—
were taking an interest in today’s video.
▶[TRAILER: WHAT IS DEBONAIR?]
─Premieres in 3 minutes
-170,000 waiting
The sheer amount of interest was proven by the number of people waiting.
Seeing the number, Dohee’s home master became even more excited.
Dol Ahyee @Dol_Ahyee
─170,000 waiting Aish, I’m freaking nervous
Of course, it wasn’t the highest figure.
There was no need to compare it to Coral Blue, whose waiting audience exceeded two million. Even Saven had drawn 300,000 viewers for its premiere countdown.
Aily had also surpassed 250,000 viewers for the premiere of its music video.
Even so, it was satisfying.
Top East had only eight million subscribers.
Coral Blue had one hundred million.
JS Entertainment had thirty-two million.
It would be strange to compare them.
If anything, I was happy.
A mid-sized entertainment company with a weak overseas presence had drawn 170,000 viewers. That meant all those numbers represented pure interest in the members of Debonair.
Dol Ahyee @Dol_Ahyee
─Wi Dong, honestly, I believe you prepared properly since you brought Dohee over. Don’t make people say, “You should’ve just left her in Saven.” For real, always, every single time, for the rest of your life, remember that it’s a miracle Dohee belongs to your company.
At the same time, the home master cursed Kim Wi-dong, the CEO of the pathetically small Top East compared to the major entertainment companies, and at last, the countdown appeared on-screen.
5.
4.
3.
2.
1.
The video, whose thumbnail was nothing but text against a black screen, began.
A screen filled only with words. Silence.
The calm sound of a page turning, one sheet at a time, could be heard from some book.
─Shhk, shhkh, shhk.
The screen changed to show an English dictionary and a hand turning the pages one by one.
The hand stopped at a certain page.
A finger trailed down the word.
Then pointed to one spot.
The word came clearly into view.
[debonair adjective]
But the finger was covering the definition itself.
There was no time to wonder what it meant.
The book snapped shut.
With the sound of air being pushed aside, the screen went dark, as though trapped inside the book.
At that moment, a quiet question could be heard.
─What is Debonair?
Then a powerful piano sound began, as if opening the first movement of a piece.
It was the third piano composition Dohee had played, one the home master had listened to countless times.
A distinct silhouette appeared on-screen.
A figure with an elaborate hairpin in her hair and dazzling earrings in her ears.
The splendid lights of a ballroom. A crystal chandelier.
Against the backlight, Naeun stared into the camera.
The hazy focus caused by the backlight sharpened.
Wearing a simple yet elegant white off-the-shoulder dress and high heels, Naeun smiled brightly.
─Refined charm, good breeding.
The screen pulled away as if fleeing.
The mood changed as well, from somewhere dazzling and radiant to something a little warmer.
A sunlit path through a park.
A fluttering outer garment, an oversized sweater underneath, and high-top shoes.
Seoyoon, dressed in a warm and cozy outfit, greeted the people she passed along the path.
She also stopped to pet a passing dog, adoring it as though it were cute.
Then she looked at the camera as if startled for no particular reason and spoke.
─Courteous, kind.
This time, the screen plunged downward as if crashing into the floor.
The tone grew even darker.
An underground parking lot. A faded city.
White artificial lights and green emergency lights flashed throughout the space.
Ua, dressed in semi-formal clothes and loafers, walked forward as though on a runway.
Then she began to dance.
Voguing, a dance created from the poses of fashion models in Vogue.
She moved in time with the piano’s powerful rhythm.
The camera passed behind a parking-lot pillar, hiding Ua from view.
And each time, Ua’s pose and dance changed.
The camera zoomed in on Ua sweeping both hands through her hair.
Then she gave a provocative smile.
─Striking appearance, a confident air.
The screen headed toward somewhere even darker.
It was a sewer.
Concrete drainage pipes jutting out.
A floor littered with what seemed to be broken pieces of concrete.
And, for some inexplicable reason, a boat floating on the water.
Chiyo lay barefoot in that boat, wearing a dreamy black dress.
Her dark eyes gazed into empty space.
Chiyo’s rough lips parted.
─Urban, indifferent.
At the same time, the camera’s path began to reverse, as though rewinding.
From the sewer to the underground parking lot.
From the underground parking lot to the park.
And from the park to the ballroom.
But even somewhere in the glittering ballroom, there was a dark space.
Everything around it was switched off.
One spot was illuminated by a faint, round white light.
A piano on a stage.
The camera arrived there and captured it intently.
The fingers dancing across the ivory keys.
As the screen pulled away bit by bit, it captured the arms as well.
Then the shoulders, the back.
In the meantime, the piano movement began drawing to a close.
The right hand’s playing in the upper register had changed from the opening.
But in the piano’s lower register, the left hand once again brought back the theme from the introduction.
A forceful performance, striking down on the keys.
Elegant yet intense.
Indifferent yet warm.
And there was one more thing that had changed from the beginning.
According to the strength of each strike from the left hand—
the screen cut back and forth without pause.
─Click-clack, click-clack
At the strongest strikes, masculine loafers.
At medium-strong strikes, androgynous high-top boots.
At the weakest strikes, feminine high heels.
Feet wearing different shoes filled the screen again and again as they walked.
Then, at last, the screen returned to the powerful performance, capturing the forceful strikes once more.
A body and hair shaking violently with the recoil of the arms.
Dohee, wearing a black dress.
The sound of shoes, which had been audible like background noise, stopped.
Dohee’s hands also played the final note, then trembled slightly.
Complete silence.
Dohee rose from the piano, looked at the camera, and spoke.
─Whatever
The round white light began to move.
The spotlight followed Dohee as she walked through the silence, her shoes clicking against the floor.
She walked forward until she reached her place.
On the stage, five members stood in a line around Dohee, inside the round white light.
The members looked toward the camera, silently moving only their lips.
Then the screen went black.
Words appeared.
[DEBONAIR IS?]
One letter after another disappeared, and a new sentence began to appear below.
[DE___AIR _S]
[BO_N ____I_]
When B disappeared, a B appeared below.
When N disappeared, an N appeared below.
And so the sentence was completed.
[BORN IDEALS]
The two sentences merged and began to shine anew.
[DEBONAIR IS BORN IDEALS]
Only then could the voices of the members, whose lips had been moving silently, be heard.
─We Debonair
And the home master, who had been watching while holding her breath, finally let a small burst of sound escape her lips.
“Wow...”