The Rotten Member Has Returned! Episode 3
* * *
“Ah… damn, my body’s completely stiff….”
I stretched out my body with a long stretch and cracked my neck, calmly assessing my current condition.
Before I returned, my body was a wreck from drinking so often it wouldn’t have been enough to say I drank every day of the week, and from the long-term panic disorder medication.
My skin was constantly breaking out, the bags under my eyes were dark, my physical balance was shot, and thanks to the drinking, I was skinny but had a protruding belly.
“Haah… Rex, you seriously make your noonas want to die. Look at this, this. What is this skin, really? Is this idol skin? An idol’s body?”
The stylist noona and the hair&makeup noona would sigh every time they saw me.
At first, they worried and didn’t hesitate to give me harsh words, but eventually, they all gave up.
Above all, back then, I had given up on myself.
And now, the me who hasn’t encountered that incident yet.
“…
Damn smooth and flawless.”
In the large mirror on the wall, I looked extremely young. Well, it’s 8 years ago, so that’s only natural.
Healthy hair, a bright expression even when I’m just standing still because I hadn’t yet experienced the rotten political games of the entertainment industry, arms and legs stretching out clean and sleek.
Well, I guess I look a bit like a punk, but that’s my identity.
I reached out to the mirror and stared quietly at my bright expression. The corners of my lips were lifted in a pleasant way.
It felt strange.
That the me before I fell apart had this face, this appearance.
When just yesterday, I was nothing but trash, so much so that my nicknames were “Rotten Member” and “Rex-trash.”
Bbyong!
As if unwilling to let me indulge in sentimentality, a notification popped up on my phone.
[Sudden Mission (NEW!): Due to the dissonance between your mind and body, you are currently unable to exhibit your full original abilities. The only way to overcome this is through consistent practice! Shall we recover at least some of the skills of a (formerly unpopular but still) popular idol and safely complete your first stage?
Reward: Album –
At some point, the menu tabs had added Mission, Status Window, and Album sections.
Unlike the Album which I couldn’t press yet, everything else was activated and ready to be checked.
Back when I was obsessed with mobile games and spending money every month, I saw things like this.
“…
Strictly speaking, I guess I’m the main character?”
No matter what, I’m an idol who even won the Rookie of the Year award, something you can only win once in your debut year. My stats definitely shouldn’t be just average.
With a mix of curiosity and anticipation, I rounded my eyes and pressed the Status Window.
[Status Window
Name: Kim Chunyong (Independent Trainee)
Vocal: 45 (55) (Skilled Ordinary Person)
Rap: 45 (63) (Skilled Ordinary Person)
Dance: 49 (84) (Skilled Ordinary Person)
Appearance: 69 (80) (Handsome Idol Trainee)
Charm: 40 (75) (Ordinary Person)
Skills: -]
“…
What the hell. Why is it like this?”
I furrowed my brow and urgently entered the chat window. There were too many things I couldn’t accept.
- Kim Chunyong: Hey
- Kim Chunyong: Hey X
- Kim Chunyong: (Screenshot)
- Kim Chunyong: What is this? Is this really my stats? Why are they so low?
A reply arrived in 3 seconds.
- X: What are you talking about lol; Didn’t you learn Korean? I even kindly wrote an explanation in case you wouldn’t understand if I only wrote numbers.
- X: The numbers in parentheses are your original stats. The ones next to them are your current state ^^
- X: If you practice hard, you can recover your original stats, so cheer up Rex-trash!
- Kim Chunyong: No, I’m asking why my original stats are so low
- Kim Chunyong: Why aren’t you answering?
- Kim Chunyong: And what? Rex-trash? Are you kidding me?
- Kim Chunyong: Hey
- Kim Chunyong: ㅡㅡ
“He read it and isn’t replying, this guy.”
Fuming, I tossed my phone onto the sofa in the corner of the practice room. Just in case, I glared intently at the sofa, but that childish ‘bbyong’ notification sound didn’t ring again.
Fine, whatever. That wasn’t what was important right now.
The mission mentioned something about the dissonance between mind and body, so I had expected it, but my stats were far worse than I thought.
The most important ones—dance, song, rap—were at “skilled ordinary person,” and charm wasn’t even that, just “ordinary person.” The best one was appearance.
When I first entered the practice room, I was brimming with confidence, thinking a debut survival show I’d already gone through would be a piece of cake to tear apart.
“I’m the one who looks like I’m going to get torn apart.”
The remaining time was one week.
…
A chill ran down my spine. I felt cold sweat trickling down my back.
* * *
Kim Jieun, a part-timer at the Hanmaeum private practice rooms, was voluntarily staying late, which was unusual for her.
The reason: the man in Practice Room 8 who had been coming for three days in a row.
“Hey, is there really someone in there?”
“I’m telling you, there is.”
“But why hasn’t he come out yet? It’s already been two hours?”
“He only comes out when he drinks water or goes to the bathroom, otherwise he doesn’t budge and just keeps practicing. He comes when we open the practice room and leaves five minutes before closing. Maybe he could even fill it up until closing, but he’s being considerate of me?”
“…
You’ve got a sickness.”
“Sickness? No, no way!”
“Ehew… More importantly, if he moves exactly the same way every day, isn’t he a robot?”
“Not a robot, but… how should I put it? Like a bad boy vibe? He’s got that good-looking human quality a robot can’t express. I told you. Slightly like a delinquent.”
Even while talking to her best friend Minji, Jieun kept her eyes glued to Practice Room 8.
Since the walls were heavily padded with soundproofing material, she couldn’t specifically know what he was doing inside, but whenever he came out occasionally, his face was utterly exhausted.
That meant he was practicing to death.
‘If only he came out a little more often. Then he could rest, and I could feast my eyes….’
“Jieun, your expression is melting.”
“Hup.”
“Hey, instead of killing this precious time, wanna watch some Leopold videos? I handpicked them to show you.”
Minji’s eyes blazed as she whipped out a tablet from her bag. Only then did Jieun realize why Minji had gone out of her way to come to her workplace.
“Hey, I told you Leopold isn’t my taste? I can’t get attached to these overly conceptual kids. Their songs are always about dying and living anyway.”
“That’s the charm. Ever heard of gap moe? Our kids dance and sing like Northern Grand Dukes, but they’ve got soft hearts. Here, let’s start with the gateway fancam.”
“Ah, I said I’m not watching! Mom!”
“Daughter, listen to your mother!”
“E-excuse me.”
Jieun and Minji fell silent at the same time.
Because while they were squabbling over Leopold, the man from Practice Room 8 they had been waiting so long for—
Kim Chunyong—had appeared before them.
Kim Chunyong looked back and forth between Jieun and Minji, who were grappling with each other’s faces and a laptop, and then murmured awkwardly in a small voice.
“Um… are you very busy right n—”
“No? No way. I’m here to work right now, you see?”
Jieun answered quickly before Kim Chunyong could even finish. Minji had already muted the sound on the Leopold video.
Kim Chunyong, looking slightly perplexed but still polite, asked them,
“Ah, then do you happen to have something like a tripod that I could rent? I want to film a video.”
“A tripod, a tripod. Just a moment. I’ll look for one and let you know.”
Jieun grabbed Minji by the scruff of her neck and dragged her into the storage room in an instant. Their eyes met in midair.
“…
Did you see him?”
“I saw.”
“Thoughts?”
“Kim Jieun had good reason to go wild. Visuals that don’t match the name at all. The good looks of a delinquent who you’d never catch wearing a school uniform blazer. But also a little dorky. Insane, crazy.”
“Right, I told you!”
The two girls stamped their feet in delight. Moments like this didn’t come often in daily life.
Minji, who hadn’t seen a real-life handsome guy treated like a unicorn instead of just through a screen in a long time, smiled contentedly before soon voicing a question to Jieun.
“Hey, but why did we come into the storage room? You said this is where you come to sleep when you’re drowsy.”
“…
I have my reasons. Trust your unnie, my friend.”
A moment later, Jieun and Minji came back out, cleared their throats, and said,
“Um, I looked, and we don’t have a tripod right now. I’m so sorry to have kept you waiting.”
“Ah, really? If you don’t have one, it can’t be helped. Then….”
“But! If you don’t mind.”…
Would you like us to film it for you?
Yes. Jieun had no intention of letting this opportunity slip away so easily.
Handsome men were precious.
Opportunities to look at handsome men for a long time were even more precious.
And opportunities to film a handsome man’s video yourself were the most precious of all.
“Hmm…”
Kim Chunyong seemed to ponder for a moment, then readily nodded.
Jieun and Minji clasped their hands together behind their backs in silent victory.
Rushing into the practice room, Jieun and Minji settled into spots in front of the mirror, huddling together.
Kim Chunyong handed over his phone and asked them to press the button when the music started. Jieun nodded, thinking to herself,
‘Anyway, I can’t even tell if someone dances well or not when I watch. So I can just stare at his face. Jackpot.’
All Jieun knew about dance was just moving her body to the beat.
Unlike Minji, who had reached expert levels in idol fandom, as a light fan herself, she couldn’t really distinguish between idols who danced well and those who didn’t.
“Uh… then I’ll start now. Please take care of me.”
“Yeees!”
But the moment a beat based on synth sounds thudded through the practice room and Kim Chunyong began his steps.
“Ah….”
Jieun unconsciously opened her mouth and let out a breathy sound.
- When I see your fluttering hair
It felt like my heart stopped
Arms slicing cleanly through the air, neat control of speed.
Details that didn’t cut corners at all.
Exquisitely splitting the beat.
Even someone who knew nothing could tell….
‘What the. Is-isn’t he insanely good at dancing…?’
Yes. Kim Chunyong had always been on the better side at dancing.
That was only natural, since his position was sub dancer.
Above all, Kim Chunyong loved dancing while singing on stage.
Moving every muscle in his body at will was enjoyable, and choreographing to the voices of other members made him happy.
When he was on stage like that, he felt like he could do it forever.
…
Though after his family’s accident, his heart had completely crumbled.
‘I’m trash.’
Dancing felt hollow. He felt he didn’t deserve it. It felt like the people in the audience were pointing fingers at him.
So naturally, he started practicing less, and eventually, he went out of control irreversibly.
After that, Kim Chunyong became known not as a dance member who excelled at delicate details, but as Rex-trash, the Rotten Member.
‘But now it’s different.’
He was in a state where he wouldn’t hesitate to walk through fire and water to regain what he’d lost, and above all….
Regardless of what that process had been like, he had a brain attached to him that contained hundreds of stage experiences.
‘Screw sub. This time, I’ll be the main dancer too.’
- I love your black shirt
Oh, A black shirt…
The music ended, and the sound of Kim Chunyong panting heavily echoed through the practice room. Jieun and Minji just stared blankly at Kim Chunyong as he caught his breath.
Thinking their frozen state was strange, Kim Chunyong tilted his head and cautiously spoke.
“Um… are you okay? Did it film well?”
“Huh? Y-yeah, YES!?”
‘C-Crazy. Crazy crazy crazy crazy!’
Jieun hurriedly pressed the pause button and handed the phone back to Kim Chunyong with trembling hands.
“Ah, ah, I think it filmed well. Thank you so much for your help.”
But even after Kim Chunyong finished thanking them, the two couldn’t move from the spot.
Flustered by the two women’s inexplicable expressions, Kim Chunyong seemed to think for a moment before speaking with a bright expression.
“Are you perhaps staying to give me specific feedback? Um, did the step part fly out a bit?”
If you tell me in detail.
“I’ll fix it more and do better.”
‘H-Holy….’
For a moment. Jieun and Minji were certain they saw a halo behind Kim Chunyong’s delinquent-like face.
Their faces flushed red, they waved their hands frantically.
“Ah, no. We don’t know anything about dancing. So it’s not feedback. Right, Minji.”
“Y-yeah. More than that….”
The part-timers’ eyes, looking at Kim Chunyong, sparkled.
‘Ah, wait a moment.’
Kim Chunyong already knew when, where, and from whom he received looks like these.
More than knowing, it was the kind of look he had endlessly longed to receive once again.
This, without a doubt….
“Can we get your autograph!?”
“M-me too. I mean, I know you’re not a celebrity yet! But I’m sure you’ll succeed in the future!”
It was the look from a fan.
At that moment, a ‘bbyong!’ notification flew in from his phone. Startled by it, Kim Chunyong answered impulsively, his voice cracking.
“Yeeex—I mean, yes! I’ll give it to you.”
“Amazing! Wait a moment, I’ll quickly get paper and a pen!”
While they rushed out of the practice room, Kim Chunyong checked the notification that popped up on his phone.
After throwing a few jabs at the phone, that is.
“Send these at the right time and place, watch your timing….”
[Album: Encounter with Your First Fan
Congratulations! Since your return, you have made your first fan.
To walk a path, the first step you take is always important. Your first fan will support your activities, cheer for you, and won’t be afraid to speak up. Let’s create even more fans in the future!
Collection Reward:
“First fan….”
Kim Chunyong’s face collapsed oddly between joy and relief.