Chapter 131
The first meeting ended with understanding the situation rather than coming up with a concrete plan.
“Alright, everyone, make sure to thoroughly research your assigned parts by the next meeting!”
The expressions of the members who were given tasks were peculiar.
And I probably had a similar look on my face as well.
‘So this is what those group projects I’ve only heard about are like.’
It wasn’t that I had never dreamed of a university life, but I never wanted to actually experience it like this.
Anyway, Gyun Seong-ha and I were assigned to come up with ‘100 topics to talk about when you have nothing to say.’
Not 50, not 60, not even 80, but 100 for a simple reason.
There were 100 people coming to the fan signing event.
Of course, this didn’t mean we had to write one question for each person.
We could ask the same question to different people, or not use any of the prepared questions if the person brought up a lot of topics themselves.
“Number 78. If you had the opportunity, would you consider joining our company?”
“As a follow-up question, number 79. If we go hiking once a week, would you still be interested?”
“…Didn’t the manager tell you never to mention that?”
“Then start with ‘if’. By the way, my answer is, if you want to get a handsome guy, give up the mountains. Just thinking about how I got scammed into hiking makes me want to tear up the contract!”
“…Are you calling yourself handsome?”
“I might be embarrassed about other things, but I’m not ashamed to compliment my looks.”
Gyun Seong-ha twitched his eyes, both acknowledging and ignoring me as he pondered, “80… 80…”
“Ugh, no matter how much I think about it, 100 is too many…!”
Finding it impossible to think of more, Gyun Seong-ha rolled halfway on the floor, tearing at his hair in frustration.
His hair, which had already been pulled out once in the 30s and once in the 50s, screamed in agony again.
‘This guy… doesn’t know the value of hair and scalp.’
If he bleached his hair a few times, he would never do such a sacrilegious thing again.
“I’ll do it for you. Number 80. If you get a chance to pull Seong-ha’s hair, how many strands would you pull? My answer is 80 strands, because it’s number 80.”
“…81. If you had a legitimate chance to annoy Raon, what method would you use?”
“Wow, big brother is actually trying to bully his little brother.”
Anyway, we barely managed to come up with 100 topics.
What did you ride here today, is there a song you want us to sing, have you had any good news lately, is there a concept you want to see… We started with meaningful topics but ended up with a lot of unproductive ones towards the end.
Considering productivity, we wouldn’t have even come to the fan signing event, which could be considered the pinnacle of unproductivity, so we decided to let it slide.
“Finished!”
“They won’t make us memorize these, right?”
“Don’t even mention it.”
But as they say, you never know what’s going to happen.
Ban Yo-han, looking at the list that Gyun Seong-ha and I made with a sly smile, said:
“Alright. If we’re going to roll in the mud, we might as well hold hands and roll together.”
…With that, he copied the list and distributed it to the other members.
Then, he made us memorize the questions.
“Why didn’t you take any questions?”
“I’ve memorized them all.”
Hearing such an annoying comment, Kang Ji-woo grumbled that he was so unlucky.
Since Gyun Seong-ha found it difficult to memorize, I also called over Kang Ji-woo and Seo Moon-gyeol, and used the “Eye-Level Education” skill for the first time in a while.
“There’s no way my memory is this good?”
Seeing the student in awe of his own achievement, I felt proud despite the fatigue from teaching.
“Wow, you guys really memorized this?”
This fox?
Kang Ji-woo trembled in agony, saying it felt like a professor who gives an impossible assignment and then asks if you really completed it.
“Seong-ha, take care of it.”
“Yes, hyung.”
Ban Yo-han was flattened by the obedient Seong-ha.
Seo Moon-gyeol didn’t stop Seong-ha either.
He, too, had become oddly quiet and calm.
Anyway, while we squeezed out 100 questions.
Seo Moon-gyeol researched exemplary cases of fan signing responses, and Kang Ji-woo thought about what not to do and unexpected situations that could occur during a fan signing event.
“Do we really have to go this far?”
“Of course, if we can do it, we should.”
In Kang Ji-woo’s eyes, there seemed to be a hint of regret, but it was probably my imagination.
Ban Yo-han, carefully examining the materials we gathered, organized a practical mock fan signing event based on all that information.
It felt like he was trying to make up for not being able to submit early decision applications due to missing the midterm exams in the first semester of junior year.
“Oppa, it’s my first time at a fan sign.”
With a voice so sweet it gave me goosebumps, Kang Ji-woo, who sat across from Ban Yo-han at the table, clenched his fist as he prepared to sign on a scrap piece of paper.
“Name… should I write it down for you?”
He probably said “should I write it down for you,” not “should I kill you,” right?
“Yes, and draw a heart next to it.”
That guy seemed to just be enjoying it.
“Oppa, my name is not ‘Crazy Guy’ though?”
“Ha…”
“Yes, sure.”
“Haha… hahaha…”
“Oppa, are you also nervous?”
Sitting on the sofa in the living room, waiting for our turn and watching this scene, Gyun Seong-ha and I desperately held each other to avoid running away from the dreadful scene.
“Wow, he’s enduring it.”
“He must be a saint.”
We admired Kang Ji-woo’s patience for not shoving a piece of paper into Ban Yo-han’s mouth, acknowledging that he truly had the qualities of a leader.
After finishing the mock fan signing and switching places with the now disheveled Kang Ji-woo, Seo Moon-gyeol’s expression was cooler than usual.
Ban Yo-han was truly impressive.
Much later.
Despite the maddening concept, Ban Yo-han, who successfully conducted the mock fan signing, began individual consulting based on it.
At this point, I really couldn’t tell if this was preparation for a fan signing event or an interview.
“First of all, Seong-ha, when someone comes up to you, just smile. Keep smiling whenever you remember.”
Gyun Seong-ha, the epitome of a cold-hearted handsome man, transformed into a docile puppy with a single smile, making his previously unapproachable demeanor turn gentle. This change was enough to ease anyone’s guard.
Afterwards, Ban Yo-han gave Seo Moon-gyeol detailed feedback, suggesting that while it’s good to be a good listener, it’s also important to initiate conversations. He advised not just to let people leave but to hold them back and say a few more words.
Anyone watching would think he’d been to at least thirty fan signings, given the meticulous feedback he provided.
“How is he so natural at this?”
“Maybe he was born different from you guys.”
“…Seong-ha, let go.”
“Hold on! I understand your feelings, Ji-woo hyung!”
“Today, I must stuff garlic in that guy’s mouth! It’s because he’s so lacking in humanity!”
“Should I order black garlic juice?”
“Even you, Gyeol? Ban Yo-han, you really need to reflect!”
In that chaos, I sought advice from Muk Hye-sung via text, who had experience with fan signings during his ToxIC activities.
**Me:** [Teacher!!]
**Me:** [Do you have any tips on how to make fans happy during a fan signing?]
**Muk Teacher:** [Just drinking water made them happy.]
**Me:** [Got it.]
It wasn’t particularly helpful.
Separately, I was curious if Muk Hye-sung’s fans really got that happy just from him drinking water.
Later, I looked up some of his fan signing videos on WeTube, and sure enough, he wasn’t wrong.
Whether Muk Hye-sung drank water, put down the water bottle, took off his jacket, or put it back on, his fans consistently expressed their joy.
‘Is this what idol worship is…?’
Anyway, our fan signing preparation was concluded like that.
* * *
In the car on the way to the fan signing venue.
After preparing so fiercely, I couldn’t understand why Gyun Seong-ha and Kang Ji-woo were trembling like that.
‘Although, it’s not that I don’t understand at all.’
The more you prepare, the more nervous you get.
If they had come without any thought, they would have gone without any thought and failed without any thought.
When we arrived at the hall in Mok-dong where the fan signing event would be held, we touched up our makeup and listened to the final precautions from the onsite staff.
“We will only allow touches on the hands. If anyone tries to touch your face, we will stop them immediately. If anything feels off, we will intervene, so don’t worry too much.”
Since it was our first fan signing event, the members, who were worried, listened to the long instructions without complaint and nodded seriously.
With all the preparation, we should do well, right?
* * *
Before the fan signing began, the fans had all taken their seats.
Among them was Yoon Sun-woo, who had won with dozens of entries, and the lucky protagonist of the mini fan meeting tangerine incident, who only bought ten entries but was chosen by hand.
The atmosphere was quiet but somehow excited.
At that moment, the members came up onto the stage.
Simultaneously, the sound of camera shutters began.
“Hello…!”
“Let us greet you first.”
“On and on, ORCA! We look forward to your support!”
After the group greeting, the members said a few words of thanks for coming to their first fan signing event and then drew lots to determine the seating order.
Ban Yo-han, Seo Moon-gyeol, Kang Ji-woo, Gyun Seong-ha, and finally, On Raon.
“Wow, that’s a relief.”
Kang Ji-woo, who sat down, spoke softly into the microphone, which resonated quietly in the room filled with the sound of camera shutters.
“What is?”
“Oh, Raon is last. No matter what mistakes we make in front, everyone will forget them once they get to the youngest, so I feel relieved now.”
Kang Ji-woo, having shed his worries, smiled brightly.
The fans internally thought, ‘I can’t believe I’m seeing this in person!’ and burst into joyful laughter.
However, the feelings of the members were a bit different.
This wasn’t just favoritism…
‘This guy is serious.’
‘He’s right.’
‘This hyung is completely serious.’
‘Has he gone mad?’
Thanks to this, the tension of the members, excluding On Raon, loosened up as if they had just downed a digestive after feeling stuck.
“Numbers 1 to 5, please come up.”
The fan signing event began.