The Evil Member Has Returned! Chapter 37
* * *
Liu Wei stood before him and watched the middle-aged man firing sharp words over the phone.
“I didn’t expect much. Just one thing: Liu Wei at the end of Episode 1. That’s all I said.”
- Director Shin. You of all people know that broadcasting isn’t that easy...
“PD Joo. Why are you so long-winded? As if you’ve got something to be scared of.”
As he spoke, the man pulled a lighter from his pocket. A gun-shaped lighter that lit up when you pressed the trigger. It was one of the props that gave weight to the rumor that ‘AG Director Shin Giho threatens people with a gun.’
“I know. You must have thought, since I wasn’t in Korea, you could get away with this much. I can roughly guess. But PD Joo.”
Director Shin clicked the lighter with every single word he spat out, as if the other person were right in front of him.
“Right now, PD Joo, it seems you’ve forgotten where the investment for that program comes from. I’m in Korea right now. How about we meet face to face soon. Huh?”
- No, Director.
“Don’t refuse. Make sure you come out. Make sure. Or I’ll come find you.”
Breathing heavily in a low voice, Director Shin threw himself onto the sofa opposite Liu Wei. PD Joo was making excuses over the phone, but Director Shin, ending the call with a single touch, thrust a document toward Liu Wei and spoke in an irritated voice.
“The British guy will be sorted out soon, so keep that in mind. Don’t do anything pointless.”
“...
I see.”
“Anyway, you just have to work hard on stage. Understand? Do your best in what you’re assigned.”
Liu Wei’s eyebrows twitched slightly as he silently nodded along to Director Shin’s Chinese.
“...
I understood everything. But there’s one more.”
“What? Say it louder. I can’t hear you.”
When unexpected words came from the ever-quiet Liu Wei, Director Shin frowned and muttered.
“I said, there’s one more person to deal with.”
And Liu Wei continued without backing down an inch.
“Of course I know we need to deal with Logan Lee first. But...”
Liu Wei stopped there and fell into thought for a moment. Aside from Logan, who directly interfered with his path, there was that guy he had specifically mentioned to Gao Yan. The one who, on the first ranking evaluation shoot day, had shown a dance even cleaner than his own. The one who was now on the TV in Director Shin’s office, giving an interview with a bright expression.
“...
That one.”
Liu Wei pointed a finger at the screen and said firmly.
- “Joo An was struggling a bit with the dance break choreography... so I thought if I helped a bit, it’d go faster.”
“That guy needs to be dealt with too.”
“...
Huh.”
Following Liu Wei’s gaze, Director Shin checked the screen and clicked his tongue. ‘Is it because he’s a precious young master? He can’t see reason,’ he thought.
‘Why is he suddenly keeping tabs on that nobody?’
Director Shin knew about Kim Chunyong’s existence, too. Of course he did. He was a trainee who had fallen out of the Queens debut team and was hastily added by Shin himself just to fill the numbers. Handsome but too sharp, a divisive face, and vocals that weren’t particularly outstanding.
‘He dances quite well, but even if—just if—he debuted, Liu Wei is the main dancer anyway, so he’d be as good as invisible.’
But Liu Wei, who looked like a pale ice doll as he stared at Kim Chunyong, had eyes that were rarely boiling with some kind of emotion.
‘Tsk, how bothersome...’
At any rate, the trainee that Chinese investors were most excited about and wanted to succeed was Liu Wei. There was no need to have a bad relationship with the one under the investors’ protection. Director Shin, accustomed to moving with the flow of money, opened his mouth toward Liu Wei in a suitably placating tone.
“If that guy directly interferes with us, then I’ll really sort him out for you.”
“Directly interferes?”
“There’s no justification yet, is what I mean.”
“......”
Director Shin pressed his finger firmly on the document in front of them and chewed his words.
“This guy, Logan, is clear. He’s a hindrance to our vision, that one. But that other one? A guy with no connections and nothing, just singing and dancing? Is that a reason?”
“......”
“Just being an eyesore to you isn’t enough. I think you’ve understood that much.”
Director Shin clicked the lighter one more time and directed Liu Wei.
“Rest for now. I’ve sent the details of the next mission to be filmed to the hotel, so check it. The mission scores are just for show, but what gets aired from that is another story.”
Tak― Having finished speaking, Director Shin left first, and Liu Wei remained alone in the office. On the TV, Episode 2 of
- “Yongyong hyung, ah. I’m sorry. I got so close to Chunyong hyung that I slipped up! Haha, anyway... I was a bit lacking as a leader, but Chunyong hyung really helped me a lot.”
Pwak!
Grabbing the remote and hurling it at the TV, Liu Wei walked out of the office with a twisted smile.
“That justification...”
Seems like it’ll appear soon.
Muttering meaningfully in Chinese so that passersby couldn’t understand.
* * *
“Dad. Why are you, busy in the morning, seeing him off? Tell him to take the subway and walk on his own feet.”
“Oh, Bomi. Chunyong is practically a celebrity now, so Dad has to do at least this much.”
“What kind of celebrity is that? I checked the vote rankings this morning, and he’s not popular. No one would recognize him.”
“Daughter! I told you not to speak only the truth to your brother like that!”
“Haha...”
Watching the comic banter between my dad and older sister, who had come to see me off in front of the dorms early in the morning, I let out a tired, bloodshot smile.
“No, I’m serious. He was like 8th or 9th. If he gets eliminated from this survival too, we really have to make him work at Dad’s shop.”
Every single thing my sister said hit me right in the bone, but it could be interpreted as her meaning, ‘I went to the voting page at the crack of dawn to vote for Kim Chunyong,’ so it made me feel good.
“Aigoo, I went in to vote for our Jaeha, but Kim Chunyong’s face kept appearing. Tsk. Ugly thing.”
...Is it not?
“I’m going now. Sis and Dad, you should go too. Both of you have to get to work.”
As I pushed the two of them on the back with a slight pout of disappointment, my sister suddenly grabbed my shoulder.
“Hey, hey. Kim Chunyong. Wait a minute.”
“What now? Since it’s the last time, should I get hit once before I go? If so, hit my back, not my head. I think my head’s getting dumber from getting hit so much...”
“No, hey. Who’s that over there? Are regular people allowed to just go into a place like that?”
I quickly raised my head and looked in the direction my sister was pointing. And there.
“......”
Logan was standing there, wandering around the parking lot with a face that looked like he had a lot on his mind.
Seriously, what is he doing at this hour? I had already been thinking a lot about Logan’s upcoming departure, and seeing that face in 3D surround sound now, I couldn’t hide my bewilderment. Because...
“He’s not a regular person.”
“Then who is he? A staff member? Or just a trainee?”
“Uh, he’s a trainee and my roommate who shares a room with me...”
“What? Then introduce him. Since I came all the way here, are you just going to send this sister away?”
Knowing my sister, a high school teacher in Confucian Korea, would be like this.
Normally she would have just let it go, but with her interest in
Back before I came back, in my troublemaker days, the faces of the guys full of worries I always drank with looked just like that.
But I couldn’t bring myself to ignore the expectant eyes of my sister and dad looking at me.
“...
Uh, Logan?”
“—Huh? Chunyong hyung?”
Logan, who had heard my voice, slowly approached us and carefully opened his mouth as he looked back and forth between me and my family.
“Oh, the people behind you are...?”
“Ah, yeah. My sister and my father. Just, thinking we’d say hello as we passed by, so I called you over...”
“Huh.”
At my words, Logan hesitated for a moment, then quickly wiped his hand on his pants and extended his right hand toward my sister and dad.
“Hello, I’m Logan Lee! To think you’re Chunyong hyung’s family, it seems the reason I wanted to go jogging today was for this moment!”
‘...
Uh.’
I looked at Logan’s profile as he smiled brightly and let out a small sigh. Logan’s attitude toward our family was truly, utterly perfect.
“Wow, it looks like Chunyong hyung takes after his father. Just looking, you’d think he’s not your father but your brother!”
“Oh, really? Haha. Since I’m baby-faced, it feels good...”
The smile he maintained throughout the conversation, the words that made the other person feel good, the voice that was pleasant to hear. However, I’ve been watching Logan for nearly two months now.
“Wow, so Chunyong hyung’s sister is a teacher. That’s amazing. I’m not that fond of studying, so when I see someone who teaches, I just go ‘Wow,’ full of admiration.”
“Oh my, a handsome guy who also speaks prettily...”
Right now, on the outside, Logan looks like a people-loving puppy, a happy retriever, but...
“Chunyong hyung has been taking care of me a lot, so I’m spending my time really happily. I’m glad I can express my thanks like this.”
...I can tell it’s not because he’s sincerely glad and happy.
As if to prove my thoughts, Logan’s mouth and the corners of his eyes were smiling brightly, but his gaze was cold. Unlike usual, as if he were wearing a mask.
“It would be nice if we could see each other again. Take care on your way, See ya!”
“Alright, student. Come visit our house sometime!”
“A handsome trainee who’s not Kim Chunyong is always welcome...”
After the short conversation and farewell between Logan and my family, we walked toward the dorms. Normally Logan would have chatted about this and that, but his mouth was firmly shut.
“Hey, Logan.”
“...
Huh? Why, Chunyong hyung?”
“Is something wrong? Your expression has been off since earlier.”
It wasn’t like I had no guesses at all in this situation. The two days of vacation, the suddenly darkened face. Plus, the words I had overheard from the conversation between Liu Wei and Gao Yan, and my previous memories. But, it was something I couldn’t bring up rashly until I heard it from Logan’s own mouth.
“Um...”
At my question, Logan seemed to choose his words for a moment, then answered with a slightly hollow laugh.
“Chunyong hyung, you seem to have a good relationship with your family.”
“Logan, what did you say?”
“No, no. It’s nothing. It’s just, something...”
Did I hear wrong? ...It seemed like Logan said ‘envious’ at the end.
And why is he suddenly talking about our family? What for?
But before I could even doubt my ears, Logan spoke up with a somewhat very confused expression.
“Right, I’m only telling this to Chunyong hyung. To the other flatmates and trainees, it’s a secret.”
I think I have to go back to England soon.
“Probably the next filming will be my last. I’ll do my best for the remaining filming, but...”
“......”
“That’s how it’s turned out. Jesus. This feeling is really strange! Something that was decided just during a holiday...”
He said he might have to go back, phrasing it that way, but in the end it was the same as saying he’d be dropping out. It wasn’t just before the next competition; Logan’s departure had been in the works since the second competition’s vacation.
“...
Suddenly? Why do you have to go back?”
I, who already had that fact in mind, acted as naturally surprised as possible and asked indirectly about the reason. The talk about family earlier was a bit unexpected, but this had room for conversation.
But, was it a matter of course?
“God, well. To say that much is, a bit.”
Logan didn’t give a straight answer.
“Are you going because you want to? It doesn’t seem like that. If that’s the case, I could help.”
“That’s also true, but bloody... it’s not an area where I can be helped.”
It was a different sight from the Logan I had seen so far. Should I say a bit colder? Or more distant. Or was this his original personality, and the survival environment had made him seem more lively?
Maybe because my expression was so puzzled, Logan, who had been kicking the ground with his foot and pressing his forehead, quickly added with an ‘oh no’ face.
“Holy! Chunyong hyung, only hyung. Only hyung should know. God, I didn’t plan to talk about it originally.”
“...
Well, I get it. But first—”
“Whatever, anyway! I’ll head off first. Gao Yan asked me to give her a morning call, and I forgot! Come slowly, Bro.”
I watched Logan’s back as he quickly walked away after saying only his piece, and I moistened my lips with my tongue. Yeah. This might have been the wrong approach.
“...
Still, it can’t be helped.”
I didn’t want to go about it in a prying way. But the situation is what it is.
I secretly apologized to the fleeing Logan. What Logan, who was hastily avoiding me, didn’t know was that I knew what I’d be filming from now on.
“In my time as the evil member, the guys I listened to their worries numbered over a hundred, no kidding...”
Still, don’t worry, Logan. Unlike back then, this time it’s definitely all to help you, man.