The Malicious Member Has Returned! Episode 91
Wooong―
The song that began simultaneously with the cheers was one that fans and trainees alike,
everyone there, had heard so many times it was practically tattooed on their eardrums: the group version of
Waaaah!!
It was now almost natural for fans to sing along with the familiar backing track blaring from the speakers.
- Shining city, noisy people
But here, only you and me,
You & I
Those who had previously handled the intro in their respective teams stepped forward and began singing together.
Gao Yan, Ryota, Lee Chae-hyeok.
They had started with low rankings and never achieved high stage scores throughout the survival show.
[Chae-hyeok, let’s meet for a long time!][!!]
[The man who will change the rules, Gao Yan!!]
[Youth on stage, RYOTA♬]
And yet, clearly, there were fans cheering for them.
That you are doing well right now.
That I am cheering for you like that.
And the trainees who had faced those shouts on countless stages were determined to live up to that support.
- Saying it’s too early to run
Doesn’t apply to us,
Start the Bike, Hurry up & Hop on
Gotta hurry to reach the end
As the part was nearly over, the three simultaneously brought their hands to their foreheads and gave a brief salute to their fans.
And as a bonus, though they didn’t make a sound, their lips moved exaggeratedly.
‘I’ll work hard!’
It was to send a message to their fans.
Because you’re watching me, I’ll do it properly until the end.
That sight was vividly visible to the other trainees forming the formation behind them, and it naturally had an effect.
Especially on Ji Hwaseong, who had suffered a minor injury from the earlier incident.
- I need it, You Know
Closer, Hey Much Closer
The barrel aimed at me
To me, just an ovation
Already ready, Ready to Shoot
Taking turns rapping with Ryota and Li Mingshen, who stood beside him, Ji Hwaseong acted his expressions more naturally than anyone.
After all, he’s a trainee who’s practically a lock for debut these days. And that’s not all.
- You beside me and Fever time
Fear only makes us grow
His blonde hair, freshly touched up at the roots, swayed with every movement.
Bleached hair. Tight leather pants on long legs.
A playful expression, and a perfect rap without missing a single syllable.
Just with these, you’d think, ‘Ah, he’s really going to debut,’ but…
On top of that, with a sparkling smile, at the ‘Fear only makes us grow’ part,
“Bang!”
He mimed a finger gun, bang.
“Hwaseong-aaak!!”
Not a single fan noticed that beneath his gloved hand was a back of his hand cut by a mirror shard.
“Eugh….”
But I, who already knew the truth, could only click my tongue.
“Are you okay?”
“What do you mean ‘not okay’? Tsk, it stings a bit… but it’s nothing. I’m totally fine.”
“It is a big deal, man. You got hurt right before the stage. And, of all things, the words you heard….”
“—Yongyong hyung.”
“…
Oh.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’m definitely debuting today. I don’t care about the words of someone who’s leaving. Do you understand?”
I was clear about it back then too, wasn’t I?
“That I’d carry you.”
“Yeah, man. I get it.”
No matter what Liu Wei said to him, no matter how he got hurt because of it.
Even knowing that the hyung he trusted most wasn’t being completely honest, he wasn’t going to bring off-stage matters onto the stage.
What a tough kid.
Well, of course….
That’s why I thought Hwaseong was ‘the most idol-like among the Arrows members.’
In the first place, Ji Hwaseong had also gone on stage after hearing something shocking when we were preparing for this ‘Aiming’ song.
Honestly….
‘There’s no guarantee you’ll be perfectly edited, and the edit will favor Liu Wei under Director Shin’s direction.’ If a trainee other than Hwaseong had heard that?
For instance, Si-u, the tender-hearted Si-u….
Tch.
That, at least, I didn’t even want to imagine what would happen.
Anyway.
That’s not what’s important right now.
- This one way ticket
I’ll take you to the one and only goal
I know we’re together
The hitchhiker over there sees us
Logan, now fully looking like an idol, singing in a beautiful voice.
And after Jaeha hyung’s always perfect harmony, the fireworks bursting in front and the following highlight.
- Aim me at the world
It’s time to target everyone’s hearts
Aiming, Aiming
Watch who’s shooting
Aiming, Aiming
Aimed at your Heart
After everyone sings their hearts out in a live chorus,
- I’m on it, get on it
Woah Wooah, it’s already begun
There’s a dance break that I have to step forward for.
“……
I glanced at the faces of those who would soon step forward with me.
One of them was Minho, who had once botched a dance break because of excessive greed.
And the other was….
“First, Trainee Liu Wei will also come on stage. Since the practice itself is all done, there shouldn’t be any problems….”
“No, wait! After what happened earlier, can he perform properly? More importantly, our debut is on the line!”
“…
Right now, not sending him on might be even more of a problem, Trainee Ji Hwaseong. I understand how you feel, but just this once.”
‘I’ll endure it this last time.’
Liu Wei.
Even wearing the stage outfit arranged by Visual Director Mun Yun-ha and with makeup on, Liu Wei’s complexion was utterly pale.
Though he was performing the choreography with even more force than usual, anyone who had practiced together could easily tell his condition wasn’t perfect.
“Kim Chun-yong.”
“…
What.”
“I have something to say.”
I stepped to the center of the stage for the dance break, recalling what Liu Wei had said to me just before going on stage.
‘Hey, little brother! Do well!’
‘Son!’
Beyond my vision, dizzy from the lights, I could faintly see my family sitting far away in the guest seats.
Somehow, even from this distance, I could see them if I tried.
“I have no intention of apologizing to you.”
“Ah, of course. I don’t intend to accept an apology either, you bastard.”
“…
And this isn’t me trying to pick a fight with you.”
“……
“It’s something I’m saying based on my own judgment, without considering others’ positions.”
After that, Liu Wei said something more to me, but honestly, I couldn’t hear it well.
Because at that moment, Senior Choi Ga-on’s voice rang out loudly as the live broadcast started, and my ears were slightly muffled by my heart pounding fit to burst.
If I could know exactly what he said, my heart might feel a bit lighter.
But for now, putting that aside.
The me who has to dance the dance break of ‘Aiming’ right now….
Pressing my toes into the ground, then turning my upper body once widely.
Quick steps. Left foot first, then right. Repeated twice.
When a short breathing gap came, I looked at the family watching me.
Mom, Dad. Bomi noona, Nari.
Did Liu Wei mention something about his family earlier? He might have.
But still, it was none of my concern.
Amid the fans’ thunderous cheers, the dance break wasn’t over yet.
Lightly dusting my shoulder with my hand, head and isolation.
Before my freshly dyed red hair settled back, I stretched my upper body in the opposite direction of my lower body.
Not missing fingertip details even while twisting, I held my center and spun once.
Sliding long across the floor with my knee, then naturally rising with the rebound….
This time, I looked at my Arrows members spread out in every direction.
And finally, I fixed my gaze on Liu Wei, who had finished the dance break with me.
It was only later that I noticed his arm, which should have been extended at the same height as mine, was hanging a bit lower.
—Boom!!
The firecrackers the production team had swept in for this live broadcast went off intensely, followed by the final chorus.
- Aim us at the world
It’s time to target their hearts
Aiming, Aiming
Watch who’s shooting
Aiming, Aiming
In my widely dilated pupils, I clearly saw the shape of Liu Wei’s mouth.
“——.”
What did he say?
As I blinked, wondering if it was Korean or Chinese,
- That’s certainly.
We (I)
Hey.
Waaaaaaah!!
“…
Heh.”
After the last lyrics played out in everyone’s pre-recorded voices.
I could understand exactly what Liu Wei’s mouth shape had been, and what he had said to me before the stage.
“Please give a warm round of applause for the stage of the trainees who practiced hard for today!”
Senior Choi Ga-on, who had quickly approached to continue the live broadcast, tried to proceed, but his action was halted by Liu Wei shaking his head at him.
“Huh? Trainee Liu Wei, wait….”
“……
One step.
Liu Wei, stepping forward to the front of the stage, slowly blinked his eyes just as he had done to me.
“If, this time too, I lose to you on stage….”
Then.
‘I’ll say what I’m thinking right now.’
Before the other trainees could even catch their breath, before Senior Choi Ga-on could stop his impulsive action.
Liu Wei’s slightly trembling lips slowly parted.
I….
“After this stage, I will return to China.”
——.
It was only natural that gasps erupted from all around.
Even if everyone here knew it, for him to bring it up as soon as the first stage ended?
Without even sharing a nice moment or a hug with the other trainees?
‘This is too much!’
It sounded like the main writer, who had been monitoring for contingencies, was screaming all the way to the stage.
But what’s done couldn’t be undone.
The 6,000 audience members here. And the countless viewers watching on laptops, tablets, or even in movie theaters.
All of them had heard his calm yet impactful words.
“No, Trainee Liu Wei? You seem overwhelmed with emotion! Haha, but still, later, for the final greeting one more time….”
“No. I won’t do a backstage. This is my last.”
That I would do that,
“I decided for myself.”
Amid everyone’s confusion and bewilderment, Liu Wei’s gaze was fixed on me.
I could clearly tell by the faint red glimmer wavering beyond his brown eyes.
What Liu Wei wanted to say to me was simple.
No matter what I said to him, he was doing it because he could, because he had to.
Even this time, it was a decision he made on his own judgment.
“Hoo….”
Even as I caught my breath from the dance break’s aftermath, I couldn’t help but click my tongue in anger.
To the very end, Liu Wei was truly a terrible bastard.
No apology, just stubbornly sticking to his own way.
“……
I tried to force my spontaneously clenched fists to relax, staring at him with the coldest eyes I could muster.
After all, Liu Wei would leave without getting what he wanted this time.
He couldn’t obtain anything.
That was the price for his own viciousness.
Because it was the result of what I did to protect my family and my members.
“…
Yes, yes. So that’s how it is! Thus, Trainee Liu Wei leaves the stage with a heavy heart, but please everyone support his shining future endeavors!”
Woo, waaaah…
Senior Choi Ga-on handled it professionally, and Liu Wei simply walked off the stage.
Still, it was true that seeing the back of someone I had once debuted with on the same team felt strange….
But I couldn’t afford to pay attention to a guy who had already left, a guy who was leaving having lost everything he wanted.
“Now, after watching a VCR, we will check out the next trainees’ group stage!”
Arrows, my family, and the live broadcast stage.
“And, let’s also meet the name of the team that will debut through
The answer to whether the first goal of my contract with X would succeed or fail….
was approaching me at a terrifying speed.