In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 77

Woojoo woke up with a start.

The sight of his siblings entering the studio felt unreal.

“What are you talking about?” Woojoo asked as he lifted up Rihyuk, who was sprawled on the floor.

He would have normally complained that Woojoo got dust on him, or called him a bad Hyung, but he was just gaping like a fool.

Of course, Woojoo was the same.

“We’re the first-place candidate?”

“Us?”

“Yes.”

Woojoo looked at the other two guys standing next to Bijoo.

They nodded vigorously.

It seemed like they were telling the truth. Junghyun was really bad at lying.

Woojoo stared blankly at Rihyuk.

“We’re the first-place candidate?”

“That’s right.”

“…”

“…”

There was a brief silence, and then they screamed and hugged each other.

They played rock-paper-scissors and danced around.

They were like monkeys around a bonfire, cheering and celebrating.

It took them a while to calm down.

“Guys, it’s a rare happy day for us. Let’s have a toast.”

“Yeah, let’s drink.”

“I’ve always wanted to drink this whenever I saw it in the fridge.”

Woojoo opened the grape juice in the studio fridge with a pounding heart.

It was something he couldn’t touch because of the PT teacher who threatened him with an extra set of squats every time his BMI got worse.

If not today, then when?

Woojoo took a sip of the sweet juice and asked what happened.

“So, how did this happen?”

Bijoo explained to them how they became the first-place candidate.

Showtime.

Showtime was a cable music show that was recorded every Tuesday in Sangam-dong.

Unlike other programs, Showtime had a peculiar rule.

Singers who didn’t perform that day were excluded from the first-place candidate.

“Right now, there’s a lot of damage because of the typhoon.”

“Typhoon?”

What did that have to do with the first-place candidate?

“Because of the typhoon, Autumn Girl ended their activities early. Their song has lyrics like ‘The endless season’, ‘The rain sweeps away your heart’. I guess their agency was worried about the controversy.”

Woojoo took out his smartphone and searched for Autumn Girl.

It was true.

-Autumn Girl, who achieved a triple crown for three consecutive weeks on music shows, ended their activities early due to the typhoon ‘Jokjeobi’. SNH Entertainment said, ‘We think the lyrics are inappropriate in the current situation where many people are suffering from the damage’…

There was also a heartwarming story that one of the members was from the affected area and left for volunteer work to help with the recovery.

The comments were also positive.

Woojoo understood why the first-place candidate was empty after reading the article.

Usually, normal music shows would give the first place to anyone who had the score, even if they didn’t perform that day.

That was why sometimes at the end of the show, they would congratulate the air!

They had good chart rankings and album sales, so they would probably be on the candidate list for the three major terrestrial networks and K-net, except for Showtime.

They would have a fierce competition with Daydream, who was making a comeback on Thursday.

Yeah.

Woojoo understood that much.

“Do we have the score to be the first-place candidate?”

“We barely made it,” Bijoo said.

“Thanks to the fancam, our MV views and chart rankings soared over the weekend. The PR team said that it seemed to be reflected.”

“Ah…”

It all came back to that day’s event.

Woojoo was dumbfounded at first, but then he accepted it.

The first place was empty, and they rose up over the weekend and got in as the third place.

“We’re the first place candidate…”

It started to sink in.

His heart was racing.

A pleasant shiver ran up his neck and cheeks.

A first-place candidate, Woojoo felt like spreading the news around the neighborhood right away.

He should call Mrs. Kim Deoksoon quickly…

As he was having such thoughts, Rihyuk, who was expressing his joy by slapping his cheeks, flinched as if he remembered something.

“Uh.”

“What’s wrong?”

Why was he looking at the grape juice as if it was poison?

“Well, you know. There’s something we’re forgetting right now.”

“What did we forget?”

“Do you remember our fan signing event? The promise we made as first-place candidates, to wear mascot costumes and dance in Myeongdong.”

Oh. Right.

“…”

Everyone blinked.

“…”

Thoughts flashed through Woojoo’s mind.

Midsummer.

The outside temperature was 33 degrees.

A hot and humid mascot costume that didn’t ventilate.

The crowded Myeongdong.

They imagined the hellish scene in their heads and their faces turned pale.

“…”

After a brief silence, Woojoo cautiously said, “Should we be happy for now?”

“Yeah, yeah. Hyung. It’s a good day.”

“Right, we’re not the ones who are doomed right now, it’s our future selves.”

They desperately changed the topic and regained the cheerful atmosphere, but there were still mascot costumes flying in their heads.

***

The next day.

They arrived at the HBS Sangam Tower and received warm greetings.

“Congratulations on being the first-place candidate!”

“That’s awesome.”

“How do you feel, being the first-place candidate? We want to experience it with you.”

Every time they met in the hallway, rookie singers with similar seniority congratulated them and talked to them.

“Thank you, we’re really out of our minds. We suddenly became the first-place candidates at the end of our activities.”

There were twice as many eyes on them as usual, so they were four times more careful about their words and actions.

Especially in front of the other first-place candidates.

Today, the senior singers who were the first-place candidates with them on Showtime were the girl group, Misty, and the solo singer, Joana.

They were also in a good mood.

There was no Autumn Girl, who had swept the trophies for three weeks in a row, and Jung Woonhyung, who was second, had ended his activities, so Showtime’s first place was up for grabs.

They would have been third if it had been normal, but they became the strong contenders for first place.

No matter how much they desired the first place, everyone seemed happy with the sudden luck.

After greeting everyone around, Woojoo felt drained.

At least he was glad that they could rest comfortably in the waiting room that they used to share with the first-place candidates.

While they were getting their makeup done for the pre-recording, they felt a strange emptiness and looked for their manager.

“Minki Hyung, when is the Director coming?”

“He’s busy right now.”

“Is he still working? I haven’t seen him since yesterday, is he having trouble with something…”

“Don’t worry too much.”

The road manager smiled as he looked at his phone.

“I heard about the situation and it seems like the mood is good.”

They hadn’t seen their director since yesterday.

He said he was doing business, but he hadn’t been away from his seat for this long lately.

Woojoo couldn’t figure it out.

Did they have any variety shows to appear on?

It wasn’t like he was making a new show.

The youngest, who couldn’t contain his curiosity, asked Minki Hyung, “Are you not going to tell us what it is?”

“He said to keep it a secret until it’s confirmed. I want to tell you, but it’s not my place to say. Just wait until tonight. You’ll have an idea by then.”

The youngest kept asking questions persistently, but the manager shook his head.

Woojoo guessed that the deal was done at the practical level and now it was up to the higher-ups to finalize it.

Woojoo wondered what their Director’s project was, that he had been working on for a month. He was curious about the story that he would hear tonight.

“Ah, I’m excited.”

The youngest smiled as he stretched.

“I feel so good. The Director’s work is going well, and so is ours.”

“Yesterday you were a mess. You look better, our youngest.”

“I’ve emptied my mind.”

They couldn’t help but laugh.

He had been bothering them all day yesterday, asking “Will we be first tomorrow?”, “Can we be first?”, “Can we be second?” while following them around.

Woojoo thought it was understandable.

He was getting his final makeup done, when Rihyuk bit his tongue as if he was annoyed.

“Really, I couldn’t sleep last night because of him. He rolled into my bed and whispered ‘first, first, first’ like a ghost. I thought he was possessed.”

“I was that greedy yesterday.”

“What about now?”

“I’ve completely emptied my mind,” Woojoo said with a fake smile.

“How can you empty it? It’s natural to be greedy.”

Woojoo couldn’t sleep either after talking to Mrs. Kim Deoksoon.

Honestly, he couldn’t help but be greedy.

It was the first place.

They were lucky to be nominated, but that didn’t mean they didn’t want to be first.

They had expectations, and what ifs.

But today, on their way here, they made a promise.

They were very grateful to be nominated for the first place, and the result wouldn’t change no matter what they did, so let’s enjoy the time they had today.

Let’s share this luck with their people and their fans, who came to see them at the end of their activities.

“Guys, fan letters are here.”

“Ooh.”

The fan manager appeared and handed the New Black eco bag to Minki Hyung.

They took out the letters inside.

Envelopes of various colors.

They were letters from the fans who came to see the workshop.

“Wow…”

Exclamations came out of their mouths as they read the fan letters.

“Hyung, look at this. Someone drew a caricature of us and it’s so cute. There are different versions here, haha! Look at Rihyuk Hyung’s pirarucu version. It’s so cute.”

“I want to see it too.”

“Me too.”

“Don’t look, that’s a bad person.”

“Rihyuk Hyung’s red bean version is here too.”

They laughed at the caricature drawn by a talented fan.

“Someone suggested that I should make a vlog, what do you think?”

“What?”

“Some fan said I should make a vlog about growing green onions or onions.”

“Oh, that’s not bad?”

One fan suggested that they should make a vlog about growing vegetables.

“I heard someone asked you to announce the weather every time you pre-record, Junghyun Hyung. They said you’re better than the weather forecast.”

“Why does everyone ask me how much rice I use…”

It was a cable program that didn’t get much attention on the internet, but it seemed like all of their Soufflés watched it, judging by the comments about Junghyun.

Of course, there were other things that took up most of the space.

-Guys, congratulations on being the first-place candidate. We know how hard you’ve worked, so don’t feel pressured. It’s a great thing to be a candidate.

-P.S. What kind of mask are you going to wear?

…Woojoo pretended not to see the last postscript.

Woojoo erased the last PS from his mind and savored the fans’ hearts.

They said they didn’t care if they didn’t win first place, they just wanted them to enjoy the stage without any burden.

As they all smiled warmly.

That was when it happened.

Knock, knock.

The door opened and an FD with an intercom stuck his head in.

“New Black, get ready.”

“Yes!”

Woojoo answered energetically and looked around at his brothers.

“Let’s go meet our Soufflés.”

***

Maybe it was because they were ending their activities with the happy news of being the first-place candidate.

Today’s recording was more passionate than usual.

The fans chanted their name as the intro played, and they sweated more than usual to repay their support.

“Good job.” The director smiled and said, “You have some time until the next recording. Why don’t you chat with your fans for a while?”

He usually gave them some time for comments, but today he seemed to be extra generous because they were the first-place candidate.

New Black watched the staff members leave like the ebb tide and turned their eyes to the fans.

“How do you guys feel?”

They got responses like nervous, excited, etc.

“We’re really nervous too.”

“I’m not that nervous…”

“Hyung, you know your eyes are shaking, right?”

“Shut up.”

They teased each other as usual, but today there was a lot of interest in Junghyun.

Someone shouted “Tomorrow’s weather!” and made them laugh.

Woojoo felt happy seeing Junghyun’s awkward face.

He wasn’t very talkative, so Woojoo was worried that he didn’t get much attention compared to the other members in the reality shows and such, but he felt like he could throw away some of that worry.

The atmosphere was warm and friendly.

After about 10 minutes, it was time to change the set, so Woojoo brought up the last important topic.

“You all remember the promise for the first-place candidate, right?”

They nodded and brightened their eyes.

“I was thinking about something. You know how it’s been really hot lately, and everyone’s feeling irritated? I don’t think it would be a good idea to have people in mascot costumes on the streets…”

Blah, blah, blah.

“You just want to see us in mascot costumes, don’t you?”

Nod, nod.

“As expected, our Soufflé is the best.”

Woojoo raised his thumb with a self-satisfied smile, and everyone laughed.

Woojoo also smiled and continued the conversation.

“Actually, I was joking about the first-place pledge.”

Woojoo was serious.

“I read your letters carefully, and I really liked what you said. You said it’s okay if we don’t get first place, and we shouldn’t feel pressured. We told ourselves to have fun and enjoy, but we were worried that we might disappoint you.”

“I saw it last night, for real.”

Rihyuk interrupted with a snicker.

“He was mumbling in his sleep next to me. ‘What should I do?’ He kept saying. I asked him, ‘Why, what’s wrong?’ And he said, ‘We’re in trouble, Rihyuk.’ And then he said, ‘Soufflé is falling from the sky…’.”

“Junghyun, take him away.”

Their rapper dragged their main vocal into his arms.

“Hey, I’m curious.”

“Me too.”

Bijoo and the youngest, along with the fans, made a curious noise, but Woojoo waved his hand.

“I’ve never heard this story before, so I think it needs to be censored. Please understand. We had an incident where our fan club name was decided by a slip of the tongue.”

The mint chocolate fans who were holding their breath nodded in agreement.

Woojoo smiled awkwardly.

As the staff members started to enter the studio one by one for the set change, Woojoo wrapped up the talk.

“Okay, then let’s talk more at the mini fan meeting after the show. I’ll listen to Rihyuk’s story and tell you later.”

“Thank you for your hard work today!”

“See you later!”

“Oh, and we have a gift for you, so please check it out after you leave.”

They tilted their heads in curiosity, and Woojoo waved and smiled at them.

***

But when they returned to the waiting room, they were the ones who were surprised.

“Wow.”

They opened their eyes wide at the sight of the stacked boxes, and Minki Hyung and the fan manager smiled and said, “These are lunch boxes from the fans.”

“Wow…”

“We decided not to accept any support, but we made an exception for today. The biggest one is yours.”

They were wondering what to eat, and this was such a blessing…

There was a sticker of their group photo and a message saying ‘You worked hard! We’ll always support you!’ on the lunch box.

They were touched by their kindness.

“Hyungs, look at this. The lunch box is shining.”

Butter garlic shrimp, abalone, buffalo wings, pork ribs, and the main dishes of samgyetang and eel.

As they were admiring the luxurious lunch box, Junghyun said, “By the way.”

“The fans must be going crazy right now.”

***

The fans who came out of the broadcasting station were guided by the fan manager to a certain place.

It was where they usually had mini fan meetings.

‘What is it?’

When they arrived, there was a food truck parked there.

The fans who had failed to get into the show today greeted the newcomers.

“Come quickly!”

“What is this… huh?”

A familiar and savory smell.

A smell that grabbed the appetite of the hungry people who were about to have lunch.

The sound of oil sizzling.

Some of the fans who had recently decided to go on a diet felt their hearts flutter.

A different kind of excitement from seeing their singer.

The food truck of ‘HoHo Chicken’, which made chicken in real time, caught their eyes.

As they were immersed in the emotion, someone told them big news.

“Do you know this?”

The one who was picking a chicken with a toothpick said, “This is boneless.”

With a gasp, a bigger wave of emotion spread.