Chapter 107. Things Will Explode (7)
Since there was absolutely nothing near the studio where the recording was taking place, the three of them had to walk for about 20 minutes to reach a nearby station.
MalangGgom’s determination to get coffee was so intense that Soda and Gwajam had no choice but to let the youngest pay for the drinks. Still, it felt wrong to make an 18-year-old treat them, so both ordered the cheapest options—iced tea and iced Americano.
“What the, Gwajam, did you bring your camera?”
As soon as they received their drinks and sat down, Gwajam pulled out a camera, lenses, and memory cards from her bag. She took out and assembled the separate parts, then nodded.
“Yeah, I got a feeling. Hajin’s definitely going to create some legendary moments today.”
Gwajam had been a born-to-be fan photographer who invested everything into Kang Hajin ever since Miro Maze’s first profile photos were released. Until now, there hadn’t been any official schedules, so her fangirling had been limited to her room…
But today, when she had finally won a ticket to the live recording and could see them in person, there was no reason not to bring her camera.
“From what I saw earlier, it looks like the security team from the last ‘Star Care 119′ recording is here again. That guy from before. They didn’t check bags too thoroughly, so I think it should be fine.”
After carefully cleaning the lens and placing it in its case, Gwajam lightly operated the DSLR body and showed the LCD monitor to MalangGgom and Soda.
“Look at this. I took some pictures of the boys arriving before you guys came.”
“Holy crap, no way. Arrival shots? You saw them?”
“Yeah. They arrived really early. I watched them and since there weren’t many people around, I just went back to the dorm to rest. Then I came out again when I got a message from Ggom.”
“Wow, you’re really something else, sis.”
“The reason I take on two part-time jobs while on a leave of absence? It’s solely to fully enjoy the exhilarating K-pop of these stunningly beautiful boys and girls.”
“Sis, do you also stan girl groups?”
“Yeah. But these days, there’s no one I’m particularly into… Just occasionally attend the events of those who catch my eye.”
Soda marveled at Gwajam’s words, shaking her head in admiration.
Though she momentarily forgot that she herself had stayed up until 3 AM last night editing Lee Doha’s GIFs, and had finished a project due today within 30 minutes on the way here.
“Wow, I knew you were good, but you’re really amazing…”
Soda and MalangGgom admired the preview shots Gwajam had taken, flipping through them one by one.
The trainees, fresh-faced and dressed in casual clothes, were captured in natural light as they stepped out of the car and headed into the studio, looking fresh and innocent.
“I took a few shots of Doha too, do you want the data?”
“No, no. I’m already running a GIF account… Actually, should I get it just in case?”
“You’re wavering again.”
“Then just take the data. You can keep it for yourself. I’ll send it to you later when I get back to the dorm.”
“Thanks… I’ll give you a GIF of Hajin as a warm-up in exchange. Let’s trade.”
“Hey sis, is there no Siwoo?”
“Yeah, I couldn’t get any of Siwoo. They seem to have split up into several cars. Maybe he came early, or maybe late. Anyway, I didn’t see him. But I’ll take a few shots during the performance later.”
With the attendance check done, it was now time to wait endlessly.
The three of them began to chat in earnest.
“When should we have lunch?”
“The audience session is at 4 PM… If we eat too early, we’ll get hungry later. How about grabbing something quick here and then having a proper meal around 1 PM?”
“Sounds good. Oh, so spill the tea. How were the boys in person?”
“Oh my God, they’re total killers. You guys are gonna faint today, for real.”
Gwajam grabbed her forehead as if she were still dizzy, gulping down her iced Americano. She was serious enough to crunch the ice in her mouth. Then she showed them a preview of an arrival shot from her camera gallery.
“Check this out. Hajin and Doha’s outfits today.”
“Crazy, I love Doha’s tracksuit.”
“Wow. But his physique is insane, really. Doha could totally pass as an athlete.”
“But Hajin… he seems to have a knack for fashion. You know what I mean.”
“A guy in a denim jacket and beige pants showing up for work at dawn? That’s just likable. Totally likable.”
“It’s like they’re both PE majors, but Doha has a lot of practicals so he wears mainly training clothes, while Hajin is the class president or something and has to attend a lot of events, so he dresses slightly more campus-style.”
Though each of them had different biases, the trainees they liked were mostly the same. Sometimes, even if they liked the same trainee, they’d clash over different points of interest or character interpretations. But the reason they had remained friends for so long was simple: their tastes and the aspects they liked in their fandom were surprisingly similar.
“Ah, by the way, I’ve got something to say.”
After talking at length about Doha, Wonho, and Siwoo, Gwajam interlaced her fingers with a serious expression as if she were about to make an important announcement.
“I’ve decided to stan Yugeon.”
“No way, seriously?”
“Really? But actually, I have too. I’ve been into him for quite a while now.”
“He might not be my ultimate bias, but if he debuts with Hajin, I think I could watch over him with love.”
Gwajam’s “adoption criteria” were only passion, ambition, and talent. The fact that Gwajam was now stanning Yugeon? The two looked at her with surprised faces.
“Why, why? Something must’ve happened earlier.”
“Sigh… No, listen. You know how I said the boys arrived in separate cars?”
Gwajam started her story with a serious face.
“Two cars arrived at first, right? The first car had Taehyun, Haru, and… who was it again? Anyway, the youngest ones got out first. And honestly, it was just like watching kindergarteners with their teacher. Seo Taehyun was lining up his dongsaengs and leading them inside, it was so cute. No, wait, that’s not the point.”
“Save the Seo Taehyun story for later. So, what happened?”
The thing with fangirls was always like this. They had so much to say. If they didn’t skip around or someone didn’t steer the conversation, they’d often run out of time before saying what they originally meant to.
Gwajam pulled herself together and continued with her story.
“Anyway, after the kids played with us for a bit and received our letters and slogans, the next car arrived, and the rest of the boys were in it. Hajin, Doha, Eunchan, Yugeon…”
“Sorry to interrupt, but doesn’t that sound like a failed car assignment? The first car must’ve been all laid out, and the second one was probably cramped.”
“Yeah, the second car was a bit bigger. But anyway, just listen, okay?”
“Alright, alright. I’ll be quiet.”
Soda nodded apologetically under Gwajam’s reproach.
“But the first shock I got was how close Yugeon seemed to be with the others. Especially with Wonho, they looked like genuine best friends.”
“Really?”
“Exactly! That controversy was totally unfair. That wasn’t even a malicious edit!”
MalangGgom, who had been secretly keeping Yugeon in her heart despite the others’ indifference towards him, spoke up, indignant. MalangGgom had been posting explanations diligently ever since Yugeon’s attitude controversy first broke out.
“So, the boys were heading inside, and you know we were all cheering and stuff, right? Then someone in our group must’ve been a Yugeon fan because they suddenly shouted, ‘Yugeon, your performances are always fun!'”
“Oh my God, I’m tearing up.”
“But Yugeon didn’t hear it because he was walking ahead, while Hajin, who was talking to a security guard, was behind and caught it.”
“That’s hilarious. Kang Hajin is seriously like a rural puppy, now even chatting with the set’s security guards.”
Despite being the latest addition among the trainees, Hajin had quickly become friendly with almost everyone on the show, earning the nickname “Chief Kang” from the fans.
He was especially good with the younger trainees, often seen with them in every scene in *Miro Maze*. Whether he was pulling them close, or they were playfully bumping into him, many fans found his natural interactions with the younger ones adorable and likened him to a large, friendly dog.
“Hajin looked at us for a while, then suddenly ran off. I thought, ‘What’s going on? Is he late?’ But then a little later, he came back out with Yugeon… Oh, wait a sec.”
“Wow, are you crying? Are you actually crying?”
“Unnie, are you crying?”
“Ah, I just got emotional thinking about it.”
Remembering the moment, Gwajam suddenly choked up. Seeing her genuinely tear up, Soda and MalangGgom became even more flustered.
“No, seriously, you
’ll cry when you hear this too. So Yugeon comes out, and he’s smiling so beautifully… and he says, ‘It’s a stage you all have protected, so please enjoy it! I’m having fun these days.’ Then he and Hajin both bowed at 90 degrees and made eye contact with each person before going back in.”
“That’s insane.”
“What, do they know everything? Did they say that on purpose?”
“The mood felt that way. When they were going in, the others seemed a bit mindful of Yugeon too… Anyway, after seeing that, I decided to stan Yugeon. If he had been all down and depressed, maybe not, but he was smiling confidently, like he didn’t care at all. And standing next to Hajin, they looked pretty good together, to be honest.”
Gwajam’s eyes were now glistening. There wasn’t much more to say.
Her gaze was like Psyche’s when she lit the lamp to see Eros’ face in the middle of the night. In other words, it was full of love.
“Really? Should I stan Yugeon too…”
“Unnie. Let’s stan Yugeon together?”
“How did you manage to stan both Siwoo and Yugeon after just episode 2? You’re really something else.”
“Visual main vocal and cool bad-boy main dancer? Unnie, this is a love driven by instinct.”
Soda pondered Gwajam and MalangGgom’s words for a moment.
‘Of course, the controversy was unfair… But still, the fact remains that Yugeon seems unmotivated and isn’t great at singing, right?’
Public opinion had quickly flipped in Yugeon’s favor after his family situation was revealed, and it was true that Soda felt sorry for misunderstanding him. But to say he deserved redemption so easily?
‘Not sure about that… Not that I’m going to say anything.’
There was no need to debate Yugeon’s faults and virtues at this moment.
Even if she didn’t say anything, the shield created by sympathy and pity was fragile. Once that shield was gone, how Yugeon would be remembered by the public would depend entirely on him.
Time would tell.
‘Still, I hope he isn’t on the same team as Doha or Hajin for today’s stage.’
While Soda wished Yugeon would prove himself with his own skills, she didn’t want her favorites’ stage to be the testing ground. It was her first time seeing Doha and Hajin perform live, and she didn’t want anything to distract her from focusing solely on them.
‘Ugh, I can’t wait to see them!’
Soda anxiously fidgeted with excitement and concern.