Cheating way through to Stardom chapter 45- Cocky, but Pretty Good

“One, two, three!”

YUMI’s manager took a full shot.

“This is going up on social media!”

Really.

YUMI, excited from the applause, kept smiling. Once everything was over, I sighed. Then, the ponytail guy patted me on the shoulder.

“Good job.”

“Wasn’t I awkward?”

“Experts might have noticed, but in that situation, catching her from behind was the right move. And YUMI handled it well. To the general audience, it would look like part of the performance.”

“That’s a relief.”

“You know.”

Ponytail guy looked me up and down.

“You’re cocky, but pretty good.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“It’s gonna blow up.”

What is?

“Social media. People are probably commenting in real-time.”

Oh, I see.

“It means your face is getting known. More than just in music videos and commercials. This was a live broadcast.”

“Is that good?”

“Of course, it is!”

Well, at least it’s not a bad thing.

YUMI approached us.

“Let’s do our cheer and finish up!”

“Oh, right. Everyone!”

Everyone put one hand together. YUMI shouted.

“YUMI!”

The other dancers yelled.

“The best!”

Was that the cheer?

I didn’t know, so I couldn’t shout. Instead, I just smiled.

“I need to go to the company. Dowon, I’ll give you a ride.”

Ponytail guy shook his head.

“Oh, is this your junior love again?”

“I’m going the same way. It’s not about junior love. Dowon, let’s go.”

I nodded. Still in my costume, I headed back to YUMI’s van. She was still excited, laughing as she sat down.

“YUMI, congratulations.”

“Finally, they clapped! Hahahahaha!”

Surprisingly, her laughter was hearty.

She patted a cushion, still laughing, and looked at me.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“If you hadn’t caught me, it would’ve been a disaster. I wouldn’t have been able to get up. I’d be trending for ‘YUMI’s Fall’ right now.”

“That’s a relief.”

I didn’t want to ruin my debut stage with something like that either.

“I’m so happy today! Manager, I’m gonna binge eat tonight!”

“Okay, got it.”

“Soy sauce chicken! And cola!”

“I’ll get it later.”

Oh, not beer.

“I don’t drink. Because of the meds.”

I see. Meds? Not that I was curious.

She rested her chin on her hand and stared at me.

“Why?”

“You know.”

She pushed her hair back.

“In ten years, will you still dance with me?”

“What?”

What did that mean?

“Just kidding.”

Oh.

‘Doesn’t seem like a joke.’

Wasn’t she serious?

“I just said it. Must be caught up in the mood. Ah! I’m so happy!”

She hugged the cushion and smiled brightly.

“This is why I perform.”

“YUMI, you overdid it.”

“I know. That’s why I’m gonna binge eat. A good night’s sleep should help. Sleep really is the best remedy. Plus, my jinx is gone now.”

Thank goodness.

“YUMI’s award show performance is trending.”

“I guess I nailed it.”

YUMI playfully punched the cushion and raised her arms in triumph.

“It’s a beautiful night!”

“Is your name Dowon? Don’t tell anyone about YUMI’s goofy side.”

I chuckled and nodded.

‘But the company people already know.’

Isn’t it too late?

‘And I think her goofy side is actually charming.’

YUMI, still overjoyed, soon fell asleep like a toy with dead batteries. I covered her with a blanket again.

‘Well, good is good.’

Thank you for everything, senior.

We soon arrived at the company. I got off the van and headed to the dorm.

Feeling fulfilled from the day’s work, my steps were unusually light.

***

“Unbelievable, unbelievable.”

Director Joo yelled, looking at the real-time search results.

“What?”

“Look!”

Director Joo was looking at various communities and social media. Everyone had something to say about YUMI’s performance.

‘YUMI! Redeemed herself from last year’s embarrassment.’

‘Loved the performance this time!’

The president shrugged after looking.

“Isn’t this the usual reaction?”

“No, look!”

Scrolling down, there was another article.

‘Who is the man with YUMI at the award show?’

The president clicked his tongue.

“Damn.”

“Crazy, right?”

“Definitely crazy. Send out press releases right away! Say he’s our trainee ‘Cha Dowon’ and a member of an upcoming group!”

“We can’t miss this chance! Secretary Lee!”

The secretary immediately ran over.

Following Director Joo’s instructions, they contacted the PR department.

“This kid’s amazing. Got noticed right away.”

“He’s got a knack for standing out.”

“Oh, about YUMI’s stage, was that back support thing an accident?”

“Probably. He’s ambitious. Quite audacious, isn’t he?”

“Handled it smoothly for a non-pro.”

The two lovingly gazed at the trending keywords on the screen.

“Smells like a hit.”

“A treasure like Kang Minjae and a kid like this. You sure have an eye.”

Excited, they fanned themselves with their hands.

“Oh, by the way, did we tell Dowon he was picked as a member?”

“No, we didn’t, did we?”

They looked at each other, then back at the screen.

“It’s late. Calling him now would be…”

“Let’s tell him tomorrow.”

They nodded, taking a deep breath. They knew from years in the industry.

“Smells like success.”

“Right?”

They couldn’t shake off the feeling of a big hit. The brother-in-law and sister-in-law grinned at each other.

***

After taking a shower, I found Lee Seungjoon lying on my bed. I lightly tapped his thick legs. The burly guy shifted his muscular legs to the side and said,

“The stage was good.”

“Thanks.”

“People are curious about who you are.”

“Who?”

Lee Seungjoon smiled and showed me his smartphone screen.

‘Is it social media?’

Well, it must be something good.

“Do you want to watch YUMI’s interview?”

Did YUMI do something like that?

It played directly from a video site. I lay on the bed and looked at the screen of the bear’s smartphone.

The interview was pretty ordinary.

The MC asked,

“So, YUMI, if you were to confess to someone, what would you say?”

YUMI tilted her head and said,

“Hmm. I’m not sure. If I did, though.”

She smiled sweetly and said,

“I would ask them to dance with me ten years from now.”

I quietly bowed my head.

‘Ah, that’s what she meant.’

The interview ended uneventfully. I lay on the bed.

‘It’s better to pretend I don’t know.’

Since she said it as a joke.

‘Well, we probably won’t meet again anyway.’

YUMI is really cool, right to the end.

I chuckled a bit.

Just then, Lee Seungjoon spoke up.

“An article just came out.”

He showed me his phone directly. I read the headline of the article.

“YUMI’s man, the new group member of Friends Entertainment? What is this?”

The bold headline was huge. Firstly, I wasn’t YUMI’s man, and secondly, the rest of it was also absurd.

‘They already picked the members?’

Why are they announcing it in an article?

“Did you hear anything?”

“No.”

“They say you’re the new group member.”

“Oh, yeah.”

There was nothing to be particularly happy about.

“Are you not happy?”

“I don’t know if the article is true or not, so being happy is a bit…”

Moreover, it felt inappropriate to cheer since Lee Seungjoon, another debut group trainee, was right in front of me.

“I’d be really happy if it were me.”

“Yeah, right.”

What should I do? This is awkward.

I looked at him and asked cautiously,

“Are you okay with it?”

“With what?”

“I think I’d feel bad if someone in front of me was debuting.”

Lee Seungjoon chuckled.

“I don’t get jealous of friends.”

I didn’t know what to say. I sighed and asked,

“Is there anything you want to eat?”

“Will you make it for me?”

“Yeah, man.”

Lee Seungjoon laughed out loud.

‘He’s actually offering to make something!’

Lee Seungjoon tapped my shoulder lightly.

“Don’t worry about it.”

How can I not worry?

“Ever since my attempted suicide, it feels like I’ve been dreaming.”

That suicide attempt that seemed out of the blue?

“I feel like something that wasn’t in my life before is here now. Yeah, that’s right. I’m dreaming. A good dream. Maybe that’s why.”

Lee Seungjoon stretched out his legs and said,

“I just don’t want to wake up.”

“Are you writing poetry?”

“Rap can feel like poetry. I’m a rapper, after all.”

I’m not sure if the bear is dreaming, but one thing is clear.

‘He’s more shameless than I thought.’

So, is he jealous or not?

I glanced at him suspiciously, but Lee Seungjoon just grinned at me.

“I want tteokbokki.”

“Again?”

“Yeah, put a lot of cabbage in it.”

“Alright. I’ll add some ramen noodles this time.”

Even though I asked, I couldn’t understand what he meant. Well, he is a strangely hard-to-understand guy.

‘Maybe it’s better this way.’

Since he says he isn’t jealous, he probably isn’t. Unless he changes his mind, there’s no reason to doubt him.

Whether he knows my feelings or not, the bear kept laughing.

***

When I opened the door, there was no one there. I checked again that it said and went inside.

Maybe because it’s an entertainment company, the awards the singers had received were displayed on the walls.

‘iAngel, Joo Seunghwan, Lee Eunkyun, YUMI, Vita,’

I crossed my arms and confirmed each name.

‘They’re all pretty well-known people.’

Will ‘Zenis’ be added to this?

‘Of course, it will.’

Since I’m here, and Kang Minjae is too.

I smiled a bit and turned around.

‘I strangely have some free time.’

I was considering doing some ab exercises when suddenly a familiar face opened the door and came in.

“It’s the ambitious weirdo! It’s good to see you here today.”

I wasn’t happy at all.

“Congratulations! You’re in the new group!”

I chuckled briefly and shook my head.

Really, is that something to say right now?

“Why! Aren’t you happy?”

“All information is best when fresh.”

I sighed softly.

“Ah, the article came out first.”

“Well, if the article says it’s not happening, then it’s not, so I’m just letting it go…”

Yesterday, the company gathered all the debut trainees and took pictures.

Everyone wore the same white shirt and jeans. They didn’t even give us shoes, so we were all barefoot.

They kept positioning the debut trainees in front of the camera.

‘It was obvious.’

They kept changing the people around me and Kang Minjae. Sometimes it was just one person, sometimes several.

‘The President was the one taking the pictures from the start.’

And in front of me was Director Joo, with his arms crossed.

Thanks to that, the gazes from the other debut trainees were no joke.

As time passed, the atmosphere got so tense that no one could say anything.

I thought it wasn’t my business, but still.

“Ah, sorry. Sorry. The article came out, and the next day, the President told me to tell you that you were chosen!”

The manager patted his belly and said.

“I had something urgent and forgot!”

Is everything always like this with this person?

I looked at him silently, and the manager turned his head.

“Sorry, sorry. I should have at least texted you… But I didn’t even have your number?”

Is this person really okay?

“Really, I’m sorry!”

I sighed softly. Well, as long as things go well from now on.

“So, your number!”

He gestured for my smartphone, and I handed it over. Just as I was entering my number, someone else came into the meeting room.

I thought it was Director Joo, but it was someone unexpected.

“Hajin?”

Yoo Hajin entered with a bright smile. At the same moment, the manager grabbed his smartphone and took a picture of Hajin coming in.

“What’s going on?”

“Oh, I actually came to film the first meeting of the new group members, but I forgot.”

This guy is impossible. We need to figure something out quickly.

While I was feeling dumbfounded, Yoo Hajin sat next to me and tapped my shoulder.

“I’m a member now.”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Come on, show some excitement! You’re happy I’m in the group, right?”

I looked at Yoo Hajin in astonishment. This guy, who looked quite good, smiled like he owned the world.

“Well, it’s not like I didn’t need this.”

So, I even went as far as using a cheat to stop it.

“Honestly, Dowon, you don’t have many close friends, do you?”

‘That’s true.’

“Of your few narrow human relationships, I’m at the top, so aren’t you happy to have me as a member?”

Happy, huh?

‘I guess it’s a relief.’