Chapter 13

“Dansol, are you okay? You look tired. Why don’t you take a break?”

Minhyuk, who had been plowing the field like a bulldozer, asked Dansol if he was alright every five minutes. Chairs, sunscreen, hats, water, snacks, even a fan and a radio – Minhyuk brought so many things for Dansol that his surroundings became cluttered.

“I’m fine, Minhyuk. I haven’t even finished one row yet… You should take a break yourself,” Dansol said, looking at the field Minhyuk had dug up. While Dansol barely managed one row, Minhyuk had finished three. Surprisingly, he seemed quite familiar with farming.

“Uh… Can I work with you here then?”

“This is your field, Minhyuk. You don’t need to ask me.”

Before Dansol could finish his sentence, Minhyuk sat down in front of him.

“Do you know why I brought you here, Dansol?”

“Um… Because you needed an extra pair of hands?”

In response to Minhyuk’s solemn question, Dansol answered indifferently, his hands still busy digging up sweet potatoes. The more he worked, the more focused he became.

“No, it’s because you seemed to have a lot on your mind.”

“Oh…”

Seeing Dansol flustered as if he had hit the mark, Minhyuk continued.

“This is the place I come to when I have too many thoughts. Carefully digging up sweet potatoes, picking cherry tomatoes and peppers from the back… Doing these things makes your tangled thoughts simpler.”

Minhyuk was more thoughtful than he appeared. Just as he said, as he diligently dug up the sweet potatoes, Dansol’s troubling thoughts vanished. he felt embarrassed as if he had seen through him.

“Do I look like I have a lot on my mind?”

“Yes, well… It’s not like I was trying to see it, but you remind me of myself when I was younger.”

“You, Minhyuk?”

When Dansol asked, Minhyuk casually tossed the hoe he was holding and laid down on the soft dirt as if it were a bed, resting one arm.

“I quit sports, and then my father passed away. My father’s dream was for me to succeed as an athlete, so for a while… I was really confused. I wondered what I would live on, what I should do next. That’s when I found this field. It originally belonged to my Father. I pulled out all the weeds, plowed the field, planted sweet potatoes, radishes, and flowers. Doing all that cleared my mind.”

“…I see.”

Dansol could only nod in response to his words. he was grateful that he shared such a personal story.

He was right. Suddenly returning to the past and jumping back into the program left him with no time to take a proper breath.

Dansol, who had to simulate every moment to avoid being scolded or noticed, suddenly found himself the head of the household one day, much like a young Minhyuk.

Returning to the past made it clear. Some things are only visible to those who have already experienced pain. Minhyuk seemed to have recognized that something in Dansol.

“So… what conclusion did you come to back then, Minhyuk?”

“…To do what I want.”

Dansol nodded weakly. Minhyuk had found his answer by succeeding as a musician by doing what he wanted.

As if reading Dansol’s thoughts, Minhyuk spoke again.

“I know it’s not the answer. I was one of the lucky ones. Not everyone can succeed by doing what they want. Still… I wanted to give you some time to rest. Time for your mind to rest, not just your body.”

“Thank you. I… really enjoyed today.”

When Dansol smiled, brushing off the dirt from the sweet potatoes with his hoe, Minhyuk stood up, looking bashful, and playfully said,

“I feel bad that I couldn’t help you relax more. I’m going to show you my real charm now. From now on, think less about other things and more about me.”

Minhyuk ran to his car and returned with a guitar.

Wearing work pants and retro-tinted sunglasses, his appearance made Dansol burst out laughing.

Strumming his guitar in the middle of the field, Minhyuk said,

“This is the first song I wrote here. As a singer, you know how embarrassing first songs can be… I was too embarrassed to sing it anywhere, but I’ll sing it for you because you’re special.”

Dansol, who had sung his own embarrassing first song without accompaniment on his first TV appearance, felt a bit self-conscious and scratched his face.

Then, Minhyuk’s guitar playing and singing began.

“I don’t know what I should do.
I don’t know why I’m here.
I don’t even know how to get home.
Actually, I don’t even know where home is.
I don’t want to make mistakes.
I don’t want to fall apart.
I don’t want to look like a child.
I want to cry but I don’t want to cry.
I want to cry but I don’t want anyone to know.”

Despite the bright guitar accompaniment, the lyrics Minhyuk sang felt like they were meant for Dansol.

His eyes filled with tears. Trying to hide his tears from the camera, he wiped his face, pretending to sweat, but once the tears started, they didn’t stop easily.

Minhyuk had noticed Dansol’s tears long ago but didn’t stop playing. Even after the short song ended, he continued to play a more elaborate piece, as if to distract the camera from Dansol.

Sometimes, it’s more comforting to pretend not to notice than to console and comfort someone.

“What’s with all this nonsense in the field… crazy guy… spouting nonsense!”

Minhyuk’s most modest stage since his debut ended with the village chief’s shout, who returned, pulling a rattling tractor.

“It’s time for a snack!”

“Wow! Snacks!”

Only then did Dansol stop crying and smile brightly. The village chief had brought a feast as if it were a catering service, filling the tractor’s backseat with food.

“Oh… Chief! What’s all this? Why did you bring so much?”

Minhyuk, who had put his guitar down to one side, approached, and the village chief slapped him on the back repeatedly.

“Are you the only one with a mouth here? Look how many people are around! And you! Leaving all the fieldwork to a child and just singing and fooling around!”

“Oh come on, do you think I did that? I finished all the work and was just taking a short break. Can’t you give me that?”

“Do you have energy to spare? Do you?”

“Yes, I do. I have so much energy that I’ll help out at your place too, so hurry up and bring us a snack.”

“Did you leave it for me?”

Minhyuk, always teasing, and the village chief, who was always scolding but full of affection, made Dansol smile. For the first time since coming back, his uneasy heart felt at ease.

“Time is crawling.”

“Yeah, really.”

While Dansol and Minhyuk were getting covered in dirt in the sweet potato field, Jisoo, Daesoo, and Yeomin were passing the time tanning shirtless on sunbeds at the pool inside Chunmong Pavilion.

Just by looking at them, it was hard to tell who had gone on a date and who stayed at the lodge. Only Taeoh, who was running errands among his seniors, pouted.

“When our team goes, I’m the leader…”

“Oh, right. You were an idol too.”

“Yes…”

Taeoh, the leader of Zeus, a monster group that had swept rookie awards and topped the charts for six consecutive weeks, with over 100 million views on their YouTube music video, was at a loss.

After entering Chunmong Island, he was pushed aside by Dansol from Dinosoul, who couldn’t even make the top 100. He felt like cold leftovers.

But it wasn’t that he disliked Dansol. He was more upset with Yoon Yeomin, who never gave him a chance to get closer to Dansol under the pretext of being fellow idols.

“Because of that old guy, I can’t even go on a date with Dansol…”

“Do you have any famous songs? Sing one for us.”

Yeomin, sipping the iced americano Taeoh had brought, asked while tapping his foot.

“Hey, Yoon Yeomin. Enough is enough.”

“Sit down.”

Seeing Taeoh standing there, humiliated, Jisoo and Daesoo tried to hold Yeomin back. But Yeomin wasn’t someone who could be stopped.

“Huh? Not singing? One, two, three, four!”

“Damn it!”

Unable to hold back, Taeoh shouted with his fist clenched. The sudden outburst brought silence. The production crew, who had been laughing at catching an incident, were confused about whether to turn off the cameras, and the atmosphere grew cold.

It was then.

“I see… I see you, oh my love! You’re the only one for me! My eternal love!”

With his eyes closed tightly, Taeoh sang while dancing. When the trembling vibrato ended, Yeomin’s applause echoed hollowly through the Chunmong Pavilion.

“Hey, if you’re the dance guy, you should’ve said so. It would’ve been better if you didn’t sing. Sorry.”

***

[Alpha×Omega Interview]

Q: Taeoh, are you okay?

Ma Taeoh: Ha… Give me a moment. I’m not crying because I’m sad, but… I’m crying because I’m angry. When I get angry, tears just… flow. I’m sorry to my fans… I’m the main vocalist… I could’ve sung better, but when I get so angry… But even if I sang well, what’s the point?

Q: Yoon Yeomin, aren’t you afraid of Zeus fans?

Yoon Yeomin: Why? I gave him some screen time. Without me, he wouldn’t have appeared even once.

Q: Han Jisoo, you were sticking close to Jung Daesoo at the pool. What were you talking about?

Han Jisoo: We’re not like that. But why haven’t the people on the date come back yet? Did something happen to them?

Q: It’s only 11:30 in the morning…

Q: Jung Daesoo, what were you and Han Jisoo talking about at the pool?

Jung Daesoo: We were betting on who would win if Taeoh and Yeomin fought with their fists.

Q: Who did you bet on?

Jung Daesoo: Yeomin.

Q: Why?

Jung Daesoo: If they fight with fists… Yeomin would come out with a knife, so I bet on him.

Q: So did Han Jisoo bet on Taeoh?

Jung Daesoo: No.

Q: Dansol, did you enjoy your date?

Joo Dansol: Yes, very much!

Q: There’s dirt on your cheek.

Joo Dansol: Oh my! Really? Hehe… When did that get there…

Q: Will this date make your feelings clearer?

Joo Dansol: Uh… I don’t know. Does my choice… really matter?

Q: Jaegal Minhyuk, the sweet potato field date… the production team was surprised.

Jaegal Minhyuk: Really? If it wasn’t Dansol, it would’ve been a normal date.

Q: How was the date with Dansol?

Jaegal Minhyuk: It was as good as, no, better than I thought.

Q: If you could choose a couple again, would you choose Dansol?

Jaegal Minhyuk: I would, but I think I have to wait for Dansol’s choice.