The SAVEN members, whose debut had been confirmed, were given a short, one-week vacation.
During that time, there was one schedule they all had in common: signing contracts with their respective agencies.
The members would be promoting as SAVEN for the next year and six months.
First, each agency signed a contract with LE, the parent company of Mwave.
The terms were that LE would take 25 percent of the net profits.
Shock Entertainment, the management subsidiary of LE established to support the activities of the girl group SAVEN, would take another 25 percent.
The remaining 50 percent would go to the agencies the individual members belonged to.
The agencies’ shares would then be divided between each member and their agency according to their settlement ratio.
As far as I knew, each member had signed a seven-year contract with their agency at either a 5:5 or 6:4 ratio.
That was the standard entertainment-industry contract, after all.
My contract, however, was a seven-year contract with a 7:3 ratio.
The agency had honored the clause in my trainee contract that said, “Upon debut, the trainee will receive the best treatment in the industry.”
Of course, there had been some incidents even with an otherwise smooth contract.
A few agencies had offered me hefty signing bonuses and penalties, suggesting that I transfer to their agency.
I didn’t know how they had found out, but they seemed to know that there were no poison clauses in my trainee contract with Top East.
Of course, I had no intention of transferring.
Aside from the fact that moving agencies right after debuting would damage my image,
there was also the bond and loyalty I had with my agency.
More than anything, I had promised to debut alongside U-ah, Chiyo, and Nayeon unnie to the very end.
The problem was—
“If the agency is keeping its promise, then why isn’t Mom keeping hers?”
Without even looking at me, Mom continued folding laundry as she replied.
“What did I do?”
Mom had been giving me nothing but one-word answers since earlier.
“You said you’d let me drop out once I debuted!”
“I did?”
What a petty woman.
She was still sulking over the fact that I had teased her during the live broadcast, and had been acting like this for several days.
“Ah, you promised!”
“I don’t know anything about not being first place~”
Whether my small-chested, narrow-minded mother acted like that or not, taking the qualification exam was practically a certainty.
The agency had recommended that I take it as well.
They would persuade Mom themselves.
Team Leader Sohyeon was disappointed because she thought my grades were too good to waste, but filling the required middle-school attendance days amid a busy schedule after debut would only drain my stamina. There was no helping it.
Still, it seemed they planned to send me to an arts high school once I turned seventeen.
I planned to take the high-school qualification exam too.
What did I need school for, anyway?
In any case, after taking care of the two biggest matters during my vacation—dropping out and signing contracts—I began sorting out the smaller details of my life.
First were my school friends, Sujin and Sohi.
[I: I’m quitting school now, bye-bye]
As soon as I posted a message in the group chat saying that I would be leaving school—
[Yoo Sohi: ???]
[Yoo Sohi: Don’t abandon Mom ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[Jung Sujin: ㅠㅠㅠ Mom, don’t go. I’m sorry. I’ll be good from now on ㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
The two of them plastered the chat with crying emoticons and messages begging me not to abandon them.
It was only after I soothed and reassured them that I wasn’t disappearing forever that they finally quieted down somewhat.
Then Baek Hwi messaged me too.
Quite a lot, actually.
[Baek Hwi: Dohee, congratulations on getting first place.]
.
.
.
[Baek Hwi: Should I become a celebrity too?]
It seemed like he was basically saying he would support me, so I sent him an okay emoticon.
I still didn’t like him.
He had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth and looked like some pretty-faced gigolo.
Of course, he liked me too.
The real winner was obviously me.
Phew... Why am I so pretty?
Lastly, there were the debut-group members.
Technically, this wasn’t so much sorting out my personal affairs as it was making memories.
It was a little bothersome, but it was one of the few periods of free time Seoyun unnie and I would have before we got busy.
For the unnies who would have to wait a year and a half, I could put up with at least this much.
So I happily went along with their plans and had fun.
When it was time to part, Nayeon unnie said that we absolutely had to all be together again someday, and the whole place turned into a sea of tears.
Of course, I didn’t cry.
–Dohee, shall we stop crying now? Unnie is perfectly happy with eighth place, you know?
I didn’t cry.
***
“Wow...! It’s so huge!”
Eun-ye unnie, brimming with excitement, was spinning around in the living room.
“Yes~ This is my room!”
Kim Seoyun was already shouting that the biggest room was hers.
“This is crazy, absolutely crazy!”
“Harang unnie, watch your language! There are cameras here!”
“Oh, right? Sorry~”
Excited as she was, Harang unnie had used a swear word even after spotting the camera.
Chae-rin unnie was the only one trying to stop her.
Chae-rin unnie was our only hope...
“This is the best!”
Hana unnie, the oldest member and the only adult, had also joined the excited crowd and was running all over the dorm.
“Haa...”
Of course, I was excited too when faced with such a huge dorm.
But seeing the uproar everyone was making on the very first day left me mentally exhausted.
I missed Doa.
Did Doa miss unnie too?
There wasn’t much time left before Doa stopped being a baby, either.
If I had my way, I’d hold her in my arms and live with her forever...
“More importantly, aren’t you going to look around?”
Instead of Doa, Sera unnie had wrapped her arm around mine.
“Come with me...”
...Haa.
Cameras had been installed densely throughout the dorm.
Filming for the reality show began on the very first day of our shared living arrangement.
***
There was one large room and two reasonably large rooms.
We still hadn’t chosen our rooms and hadn’t unpacked yet when the PD in charge of directing the reality show called the members together.
“Congratulations, everyone, on making the debut group!”
“Waaah~~”
“Now! You have a mission!”
At the mention of a mission, everyone flinched as if they were suffering from PTSD.
“I hate missions...”
“I don’t like them...”
The PD gave a hearty laugh at our reactions before handing over a cue card.
Hana unnie, who had naturally taken on the role of leader, accepted it and read it aloud.
“SAVEN’s HAVEN, SAVEN’s sanctuary. Choose your rooms!”
For something he had called a mission, it was rather anticlimactic.
‘Please let it be someone quiet...’
Once the rooms were assigned, there was a good chance they would remain fixed.
Moving all our luggage around would be a pain, after all.
Even though I was outgoing by nature, I spent all my energy outside. I needed to be able to relax, at least in the dorm.
Next, the PD handed us a container of folded lots.
As expected, they seemed to be avoiding competition for the sake of viewers tired of overly stimulating content.
“Then I’ll draw first!”
Harang unnie confidently rose from the sofa and immediately drew a lot.
“I got... Room Two!”
Then it was my turn.
Hoping I wouldn’t get Room Two with noisy Harang unnie, I drew a lot.
–One.
“Ah.”
The largest room.
The master bedroom, with three beds.
I had wanted a room with two people...
I desperately prayed that, at the very least, Hana unnie and Kim Seoyun would be assigned to a different room.
Fortunately, my prayers seemed to have worked.
“Dohee, let’s do our best!”
“Okay!”
With the calmest member, Chae-rin unnie.
“Dohee, me too~”
“Sure...”
Hmm... Sera unnie.
This was a real stroke of luck.
“Eun-ye, take care of me~”
“Yes...!”
The remaining three-person room went to Seoyun unnie and Eun-ye unnie.
“Can we choose our rooms again...?”
“Come on, Harang~ Let’s unpack~”
As for Room Two...
Hana unnie grabbed Harang unnie by the scruff of the neck and dragged her toward the room as she cried.
We chose our beds in our respective rooms and began unpacking.
Watching the clothes that seemed to go on forever spilling out of my suitcase, Chae-rin unnie asked,
“Dohee, why do you have so many clothes?”
On one side of my closet hung my jeans, white T-shirts, crop tops, and tracksuits—mostly clothes in achromatic colors.
On the other side hung clothes in bright colors.
They were the women’s clothes Mom had insisted on cramming in, saying that the day would surely come when I’d need them.
Especially that pink frilly dress. What on earth was that supposed to be...
“I just ended up with them somehow...”
It didn’t seem like I’d ever wear them...
“Dohee, your taste is cute...”
Ignoring Sera unnie’s comment, I continued speaking.
“More importantly, do I have to put my underwear away in front of the cameras too?”
“You can just cover it while you put it away.”
Looking at the underwear, I felt like my chest was starting to feel a little tight.
I’d have to get measured by the stylist who would be assigned to us soon.
***
After we finished unpacking, our second mission was to choose a leader.
These days, there were plenty of cases where the position of leader was little more than a formality, but in most cases, the leader played a larger role than one might think, connecting and communicating between the company and the members and directing practices.
That was why the oldest member generally became the leader of an idol group.
Hana unnie, twenty-one.
Harang unnie, nineteen.
Sera, Chae-rin, and Seoyun, eighteen.
Eun-ye unnie, sixteen.
And me, fifteen... Why...?
“Now, shall we nominate someone for leader?”
Naturally, it seemed that Hana unnie would become the leader.
Perhaps she knew it too, because she folded her arms and waited for the nominations.
I couldn’t stand it.
“Yes, Dohee, go ahead.”
The PD pointed at me after I raised my hand.
“I oppose Hana unnie. Anyone but Hana unnie.”
Harang unnie fervently agreed with me.
“I agree too!!”
Sera unnie also timidly raised her hand, glancing at Hana unnie.
“Um... me too...”
At our successive agreement, Hana unnie shouted as if she had been unfairly accused.
“Why me!”
What the fuck, you’re asking because you don’t know?
People are going to die.
The members are going to work themselves to death...
“Who else is going to do it, then!”
Of course, there was an excellent alternative.
“I’ll do it.”
A brilliant mind.
Perfect looks.
Outstanding skills.
And, on top of that, a diligent and hardworking attitude when it came to practice.
Not to mention the leadership and charisma that had reformed Eun-ye unnie.
But Chae-rin unnie hesitated before speaking.
“Um... I don’t think Dohee can do it...”
Chae-rin unnie...
I did an excellent job as leader during the first evaluation...
“That’s right~ The youngest can’t be the leader~”
“Lee Dohee as leader? Hey! I’d rather do it myself!”
“Um... well... I... oppose Dohee... Dohee is too scary...”
“Leader Dohee... Cute...”
“See~ I’m clearly the right person to be leader, aren’t I?”
In the end, Hana unnie became the leader.
You’ll all regret this...