The Malicious Member Has Returned! Episode 135
ToZ's debut album title track, “Hide and Seek,” was an exciting, cheerful song to listen to, but if you paid attention to its lyrics and content, there were many subtly suspicious aspects. The line “Lies are my specialty” that appeared in the second verse, for instance, or the nuanced undertone of the lyrics suggesting that someone who was clearly hiding was keeping close watch on the narrator.
That was related to the twists and turns during the album's production process.
“We have to put up the album specifications tomorrow. Decide, Director. What are you going to do?”
“Ha, fucking… Ah, I'm sorry. But I can't stop cursing? Damn it! Time, time, there's no time!”
The concept Moon Yunha had originally pushed for ToZ was mystery gunslinger boy meets 1980s–90s Boy Scout.
However, hounded by the realistic constraint of only about a month and a half, catching both of those rabbits was practically impossible.
“How about trimming the schedule a bit at this point? After recording ends, if we go straight to location shooting… the choreography practice time will decrease a little, but even so, we can shoot one more concept photo. Then we can match the number of photos we initially aimed for.”
“Uh, Director. Um, Jin Dasol said… if you take away any more choreography practice time, she won't stay still.”
“So what if that child of darkness won't stay still?!”
“She said she won't send the members home and will make them sleep in her practice room. She'll confiscate all their phones and cut off contact.”
“Ha, she really does it. Such a black-hearted person….”
Therefore, ToZ, who had been watching all of that alongside Moon Yunha's team, had to make a choice.
Ah, the volume of this all-important debut album!
Would they cut it down, or would they grind themselves down and do it all?
Of course, if their hearts were all in agreement, choosing the latter and gloriously burning out was also an option, but….
“I! I am against Jaeha-hyung suffering more. If you run the schedule that tightly, Jaeha-hyung's work will definitely increase. No, showing a lot and doing a lot is good. But what if we end up failing at both? There's a limit to cutting choreography time!”
“I think so too. The concept image drafts the Director showed us were really good. But there are times when you struggle to do something that's realistically impossible and end up ruining everything even more, right? Ugh, and if choreography time decreases even more, I… I think it'll be hard for me to memorize, too!”
“Me too, rather than doing something imperfect because we're rushed for time… I think it's better not to. Even just one thing, but making it certain, leaving an impression… that's important.”
At the time, before the competent manager named Yu Hobin had officially come on board, and not long after Son Jaeha's secret matter had been patched up, the majority of the members held the opinion of “Let's just focus on the Boy Scout concept we already filmed.”
Of course, there were also those with a different stance.
“Listen! Of course, I know it's hard… but when we were adjusting the song together with the A&R team. They made the song reflecting all the concepts we heard before, so if this gets cut, huh. I feel like I'd feel really awful.”
“Uh, umm… that's an issue I hadn't thought of….”
“…I agree with Logan, too. And among the teasers that have already gone up, there are things uploaded that connect to both concepts, aren't there? If we can't do all of that, it'll feel extremely disjointed.”
“Ugh, Jaeha-hyung… again, again! You're trying to take on more work! Aaagh! I'm really going crazy!”
“Haha, Hwaseong-ah… Hyung said I'm fine.”
Logan, who had directly participated in the debut song's production process, was more delighted than anyone, and Son Jaeha, despite recognizing from the previous conversation that he didn't have to shoulder every burden himself, expressed concern due to his innately diligent nature.
Both sides had their own reasons, and there was logic to back each of them up.
“Ha, normally I'd tell them to stop being noisy and get out. Since they're the parties directly involved in the album, I can't say anything to them… I'm really going crazy.”
“Director. Even setting aside what the members are saying. If the conditions don't support it, going forward as planned is also a valid method in itself. Right?”
“Do you think I'm saying this because I don't know that? …Hoo. Okay, okay. Then, let's just exclude this draft….”
And then.
The redhead, rubbing his forehead and fidgeting with his phone, produced an answer.
“What's this punk saying about mixing again….”
“…Wait. What did you say?”
“Huh? Ah, whoops. I'm sorry. I wasn't looking at my phone to look at it—”
“No, no. Chunyong. That's not very important to me. You can fiddle with your phone if you're bored. But just now, what did you say?”
“…I'm sorry?”
“No, before that!”
“…Mix them? Ah, I didn't say this!”
“If it jumped out of your own mouth, it's something you said—what do you mean you didn't? Forget it, tell me more about that.”
‘Really, I didn't say that. For things to turn out like this.’
After the first stage ended.
Kim Chunyong, sitting on the row of chairs arranged on stage with the other members, quietly nodded with a smile mixed with various emotions.
- X: No, you guys are really worrying over the strangest things. Hmm, I don't get it?! What's the problem
- Kim Chunyong: Can you please stay still for once
- X: No, look?? One is doable but two is hard, right??
- Kim Chunyong: You never listen, I'm going crazy
- X: Then can't you roughly combine the two into one?? Huh??
- X: If you just mix the mystery element and Boy Scouts well, it should work :-D
- X: The most important thing from the beginning was finding the puppy, right? Then you just need to give narrative to finding that puppy, what –3--
- X: Moon Yunha pretends otherwise but seems like she can only think in one direction, tsk tsk. In this case, it's my victory hehe
- Kim Chunyong: What do you even know to talk like tha…
So, that's how it happened.
“…Mix? Mix them? No, I'd thought about it before, but that's… wait, wait. Everyone stay here and rest. I'll be right back.”
“Yes, understood.”
“You guys aren't resting, so follow me. We have to redo everything. All of it!”
“Several teasers have already gone up—what do you mean, aaah, Director-niim!”
Having heard the words Kim Chunyong reluctantly spat out, Moon Yunha bolted out of her seat as if struck by tremendous inspiration, and returned exactly one hour later. She spoke to the members with a determined expression.
“Nothing much has changed. It's almost the same. But it has to be more meaningful and significant.”
“Uh, umm…?”
“I gave you the keyword 'accomplice' before, right? You have to keep in mind the possibility that the people I paired together might have stolen it together.”
“You… did.”
“Now, everyone suspects each other. Understood?”
“Huh? I don't really want to suspect Jaeha-hyung?!”
“Do as you're told!”
After that, not much changed.
They maintained the Boy Scout concept; the gunslinger boy was scrapped.
However, adding to the symbolism of the song “Hide and Seek” itself, in short, it became “Mystery Boy Scout.”
Therefore, the initially planned theme of “Finding Jenia” became far more exciting.
“Yes, Jaeha-ssi! I just checked ToZ's debut song. Wow, it was an ending I never expected. The dance break and ending were, as expected, by choreographer Jin Dasol…?”
“Haha, yes. Teacher Dasol took charge of all our choreography. And… our member Chunyong helped as well.”
“Chunyong-ssi? I didn't expect this! Ah, well then, since we're on the topic… Chunyong-ssi? May I ask you one thing?”
“Ah, yes. Of course.”
“From before, ToZ's teasers and songs have constantly emphasized 'finding the puppy.' So, I think now is the time to tell us the real culprit who stole the puppy, Jenia!”
“Aah, the culprit… you say.”
“Yes, the culprit!”
The time had come.
Kim Chunyong slowly opened his mouth toward the countless eyes fixed on him.
“Um, those who have already seen through the music video that went up at the same time would have seen. Among us ToZ members….”
At that moment, someone caught Kim Chunyong's eyes.
It was Director Sin Giho, who had been quietly sitting and watching their stage until now, and CEO Do Jaechan, who was beside him holding a phone with his mouth agape.
‘Well, they must have all seen it too.’
What they had prepared until now, and how they had expressed it.
All of it.
‘We're more worth pushing than you thought, right?’
A cool smile hung on the corners of Kim Chunyong's mouth as he finished speaking.
“…The culprit is no one.”
Those words were enough to surprise both those who had already seen the music video and those watching now.
* * *
At the same time.
- “…The culprit is no one.”
There was a woman replaying over and over again the live broadcast scene she had put on simultaneously with ToZ's “Hide and Seek” music video, which had already finished playing once.
“Ugh… uck.”
She was not one covering her mouth while watching her bias at the showcase venue, nor Neulbom Mireudo of AG Mulsan Company, nor Yongyongguri or Kim Jieun, who were just now entering ToZ's WeTube channel from a Hanmae individual practice room.
[Life on Mars: Bulbul-nim]
[Life on Mars: Bulbul-nim?? Around when are you coming back to SNS…?]
[Life on Mars: I think what happened with your account back then is all covered up now ㅠ I think you can just come back]
[Life on Mars: Come back and let's talk about Hwaseong together ㅠㅠ We need you to post, Bulbul-nim, so the firepower can go up and we can have fun…]
Ignoring the DMs pouring in toward her was Ji Hwaseong's malicious solo fan. It was ‘Bullasseoyobul.’
“Did I really… say that?”
Even though the debut had already been decided, she had been unable to hide her rejection of Kim Chunyong, and had taken great damage from seeing her bias show a friendly demeanor toward Kim Chunyong during a previous live.
“Maybe it's just because Hwaseong is kind? Otherwise, why would he go out of his way to Kim Chunyong….”
“Um, Bulbul-nim. I felt this while binge-watching Targeting Star. Just… Hwaseong seems to like Chunyong about as much as Jaeha. So I'm going to support them.”
“Lama-nim?! You did so much with me in the underground community!”
“Sigh, well… it's a bit of an embarrassing past. But well, I thought maybe Hwaseong's happiness is my happiness in the end.”
“N-no, that's, that's true but….”
“And, Bulbul-nim, you said you personally saw Chunyong in Apgujeong, right? When I heard that, I felt like you don't really hate Chunyong.”
‘Think about it carefully. The two of them being close. I think if you just acknowledge this, happiness copies itself for free.’
After that final conversation with the SNS acquaintance she had been close to, Bullasseoyobul locked her SNS account and lived in seclusion throughout the remaining teaser period, when she should have been actively participating.
Because she didn't want to admit it.
Because she didn't want to accept that Kim Chunyong kept catching her eye.
…However.
- Lies are my specialty
- It's all for you
- Ready or Not, Here I come
- The sound of your footsteps from afar
Watching her constantly looking for Ji Hwaseong and Kim Chunyong during the second verse's intro and the intense dance break that followed, it was as if the answer had already been decided.
“…Hoo.”
Rubbing her damp face several times, Bullasseoyobul set aside the pouring DMs and began writing a short SNS post for the first time in a while.
[Bulnasseoyobul @fireworksday Long time no see everyone ㅎ Ah, I couldn't stand that the culprit is no one so I came ㅠ I'm gonna pull an all-nighter tonight with this]
[Bulnasseoyobul @fireworksday No but what's with Hwaseong's stage? What's with the red sneakers in the music video? And what's with Jenia running away???]
[Bulnasseoyobul @fireworksday Ahh!! And there's something I'm curious about…]
Of course.
[Bulnasseoyobul @fireworksday Yes I have no pride so please tell me Spring Flower < is this a working stock?]
By that point, her post was anything but short or casual.
The flower of an idol is the song and dance that come from outstanding stages, and the chemistry between members.
[No, so what, no one is the culprit but they were suspecting each other, watching out for each other, keeping their mouths shut like that? For real? Bang Yuchan orabeoni was trying so hard to protect Jang Siu?]
[⎿A hyung obviously protects his dongsaeng, you crazy bastard]
[If no one is the culprit… then from the MV, did Jenia run away? On purpose? For this situation? No, Jenia's fandom name is totally right. To bring ToZ together, you pulled off something huge on purpose]
[⎿I (Jenia)
highly evaluate the
dog (Jenia)]
ToZ, who had aimed squarely at the target of a focused concept and meaningful significance….
[Male Idol's #1 Tutor @Mega_Sky11: ToZ's ‘Hide and Seek’ music video has finally been released. I have so much I want to say, but more than anything… I want to start by applauding how elegantly they expressed each member's individual characteristics and the journey of ‘Finding Jenia.’]
…properly began to capture people's attention.