* * *
“What’s going on, Team Leader? You’re making us anxious… Are we really in trouble?”
“You did well on stage… Hardly any mistakes…”
Seeing Team Leader Jung Heeyoung’s unusual expression, Woochul and Kyuseong asked in turn.
Louis’s eyes darted nervously.
‘He was so composed on stage.’
Despite worries due to Louis being the only underage member, he had performed flawlessly on stage.
He was clearly made for the spotlight.
But in the waiting room, he was just a regular nineteen-year-old. Dojae felt Louis’s trembling hand and held it to reassure him.
“Amazing! You did great, guys!”
Team Leader Jung Heeyoung, who had seemed to suggest something was wrong, suddenly shouted.
“What?!”
“Really?!”
“We’re… not in trouble? What’s going on, Team Leader?!”
“Gosh…”
The members, initially confused by the changed atmosphere, were relieved.
Team Leader Jung Heeyoung quickly shared the live broadcast’s reactions.
“From the intro stage, the reactions were positive. They said the angles of your dance moves were different… It spread on community sites, and by the end of the showcase, the number of viewers had increased eightfold… The response to the title song performance was amazing… Anyway, you really did great, guys.”
The mockery they’d faced for holding a debut showcase as a small agency was now meaningless. The debut showcase was much more successful than expected, thanks to the members’ perfect performance.
“Phew… what a relief.”
Woochul sighed in relief. Seeing him, Team Leader Jung Heeyoung teased.
“For someone who didn’t attend the rehearsal, you did pretty well without making mistakes, Woochul.”
“…Sorry.”
“You see, you can do it. If you’re scared, just tell me or Manager Kim. That’s all you need to do.”
“Yes!”
Woochul nodded firmly.
Hearing the positive reactions, the relieved members hurriedly changed out of their sweat-drenched clothes.
“There must be a lot of articles out by now, right?”
“We have to check all the comments on the way back.”
The members chatted excitedly as they removed their makeup. This lifted the spirits of the staff working with them. Despite the chaos of cleaning up, the atmosphere was lively.
Just then, Manager Kim Seokchul and Team Leader Jung Heeyoung and road manager Giljoo burst into the waiting room.
“Oh, hey! Give us our phones!”
Seeing Jung Giljoo, Woochul hurriedly spoke.
Dojae, noticing the clock on the wall, stopped changing clothes and headed towards Jung Giljoo, despite being in a ridiculous state with stage costume on top and casual pants below.
‘It’s past seven in the evening.’
Getting their phones was more urgent. At the same time, Dojae thought that Jung Giljoo and Kim Seokchul had already checked the results and come to the waiting room.
“I have something to tell you all first.”
“…What? Manager Kim, why are you so… scary? You really scare me.”
Woochul whined, but Kim Seokchul’s stern expression didn’t change.
“Oh no, wait.”
From in front of the mirror, removing makeup, Heungmin jumped up.
“Are the charts out?!”
“Yes.”
At 6 PM, as soon as the stage ended, the music videos for the two title tracks were released on MyTube. Also, the full album of MOST’s debut album, ‘The Very First’, was made available on music streaming sites.
An hour had passed since then, so it was time for the chart rankings to come out.
The explosion in live broadcast viewers meant more people had looked for the songs at 6 PM.
However, it was hard to guess the extent.
The music chart rankings were quantified. It was the moment to find out exactly where MOST, who had just debuted, stood.
Of course, to check the ranking, they had to be within the top 100, so it was possible they might not know the rank at all.
“W-what’s our ranking? Did we even make it in?”
Heungmin asked in a completely tense voice. In reality, it was tough for most new artists to break into the top 100.
In fact, the debut title song of Big Boys had only managed to enter the top 100 after several appearances on music shows.
Thus, MOST’s goal for chart entry was within the top 100, with a final goal of the top 50.
‘Since MOST hasn’t had any official broadcast schedules yet… even if we don’t make it in right away, we shouldn’t be too disappointed.’
Dojae thought he wouldn’t be too disheartened even if they failed to enter the chart. They could gradually work towards their final goal.
But of course, he was more desperate to see them at least make it into the top 100.
‘The teasers and the showcase response were good… it’s making me greedy.’
Greed. It was unfamiliar to Dojae, who had been constrained by his royal status.
But for someone chasing a dream, it was natural.
“I don’t want to hear it! I can’t listen!”
“Can I… go throw up for a moment?”
Woochul shouted that he couldn’t hear it, and Kyuseong quietly stood up, saying he needed to go to the restroom.
“Just give us 5 seconds, 5 seconds!”
Louis, who stepped up to do a countdown, started folding his fingers one by one.
Kim Seokchul watched the chaotic members silently.
Dojae gulped nervously.
The tension was evident on Kijoon, who was standing next to Dojae.
“3, 2, 1! Now tell us!”
“89th.”
“What?!”
89.
With just that number, the already lively waiting room turned into a full-blown celebration.
“Dynamic is 89th, and I Am Different is 96th.”
“Whoa. Both songs made it? Amazing!”
Though they were closer to the bottom of the top 100, it was a significant achievement for a newly debuted group.
The most successful new idol group currently, The Origin, had entered the chart at 67th.
Though there was quite a gap, it wasn’t insurmountable.
Considering the differences in agency recognition and promotional efforts, it was even more impressive.
“Congratulations, everyone!”
“Congratulations!”
The staff nearby extended their congratulations.
“Many had been interested since the teaser, but your stage performance really blew me away!”
Team Leader Jung Heeyoung said excitedly.
It was a perfect analysis.
As she said, the video of “MOST’s debut stage with synchronized choreography” was spreading like wildfire on the internet.
Those who watched the video found the song even better than expected and naturally sought out the music.
The members quickly received the cell phones that Jung Giljoo handed out.
They immediately checked the music site rankings with their own eyes.
“Wow, amazing! ‘Dynamic’ is ranking high on Grape Music. Looks like the public’s choice is ‘Dynamic’!”
Heungmin, pointing this out, held up his phone screen to Kijoon, almost as if challenging him, “Sure, ‘I’m Different’ is great, but isn’t ‘Dynamic’ doing better?”
“Kijoon, didn’t you dismiss it because it was your song?! If it weren’t for the dual title, ‘Dynamic’ would have been buried! Isn’t that right?”
Kijoon, who was seated and looking down at his phone, remained silent despite Heungmin’s provocation.
“What’s this? Too happy to speak?”
It was at this moment when Louis, peeking at Kijoon’s lowered head, asked blankly.
“Kijoon… Is he crying?”
“What? Crying?”
Heungmin asked back, his face filled with shock.
At those words, Woochul, Kyuseong, and Dojae also focused their attention on Kijoon.
Woochul, who had been scolded the most by leader Kijoon, rushed over.
“Crying? Is Kijoon crying?”
“Oh… Hyung.”
Kijoon answered reluctantly because Woochul seemed ready to shout the roof down.
But there was a quiver of tears in his voice.
“What? He’s really crying?!”
Kijoon, the eldest and always aloof and cool, was crying.
Woochul, who had expected to burst into laughter, was instead bewildered.
“Ah, Kijoon. People suddenly changing… We can’t have you dying right after debuting.”
“It’s not that…”
Kijoon lifted his head at Heungmin’s words.
He wasn’t crying profusely, but his eyes were red.
“You must be really happy.”
Seeing Kijoon’s face, even Kim Kyuseong murmured, getting emotional.
Kijoon was a long-time trainee at Kingdom Entertainment and had watched the Big Boys, who trained with him, debut.
Although he chose to be a key member of the next team, it wasn’t always easy for Kijoon.
He was anxious about when the next debut would be.
As time dragged on due to difficulties in gathering members, his anxiety doubled.
Then, the youngest member who trained with them suddenly went abroad to study…
Kijoon pushed himself to fill the gap through songwriting until he collapsed.
The members knew Kijoon’s struggles well.
Though he was a stern and strict older brother, he was also an unwavering pillar of support.
Seeing Kijoon’s tears, Kim Kyuseong, followed by Woochul, Heungmin, and Louis, also got teary-eyed.
“Ah, Kijoon! Why are you crying on such a day! Will you sob loudly if we get first place?”
“Seriously! We’re happy, so why are you crying?”
“Man, this is driving me crazy…”
Kijoon bit his lower lip for a moment, looking at his younger members who stayed by his side despite scolding him.
“…Thank you. For coming this far together.”
He expressed his gratitude.
“What’s wrong with this guy?”
Heungmin turned away, saying he was getting goosebumps and couldn’t listen any longer.
Everyone knew he walked away to avoid crying.
“This is just the beginning, Kijoon.”
Dojae said calmly but warmly to Kijoon.
Kijoon looked up at Dojae, nodded, and smiled.
“Yeah. You’re right.”
Kijoon was grateful to everyone, but he was especially thankful to Dojae.
If Dojae hadn’t suggested making both songs the title tracks, ‘I’m Different’ would have likely become the sole title track.
As a rookie composer, Kijoon would have trusted Director Lee Jungyeop, a veteran, over himself.
Thanks to Dojae, Kijoon debuted not only as a member but also as a composer.
There were no regrets, which was the best feeling of all.
“Let’s keep doing our best.”
Kijoon said, smiling.
As Kijoon, who rarely smiled, beamed brightly, Dojae felt a deep sense of satisfaction and smiled back.
***
A few days later.
Finally, it was the day of their music show appearance.
From early in the morning, the members, who had visited the shop, were full of sleepiness.
Seeing Woochul yawning widely, Heungmin chided him.
“I told you to go to bed early yesterday.”
“You didn’t sleep well either.”
“I went to bed earlier than you, idiot.”
Even Heungmin had only fallen asleep after midnight.
Excited and nervous about their first broadcast appearance, they had tossed and turned late into the night.
Although it wasn’t as nerve-wracking as their showcase debut, where their minds went blank, they were more excited and thrilled.
This time, it wasn’t just their stage, so they wanted to perform even better.
They were curious about what the broadcast station, which they had dreamed of, would look like.
“Hey!”
It was when the car carrying the MOST members entered the broadcast station entrance.
Louis, who was looking at the station building with wide eyes, shouted in surprise.
“Look! Outside!”
Dojae, who was recalling the image of their stage, also opened his eyes and looked out the window.
“That’s…!”
* * *
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