When I Opened My Eyes I Was a Superstar

A café near Yeouido.

Located about 10 minutes away from the main building of the KVS broadcasting station, the franchise cafe, which was more secluded than the one in front of the broadcast station, was a cafe that officials often came to when they needed to sit down and have a proper discussion.

Suk Ji Hoon was sitting at the cafe in the casual clothes he enjoyed wearing, a colorful patterned hoodie and black skinny jeans that he bought during his previous visit to Tokyo.

Suk Ji Hoon, who was even wearing limited-edition sneakers, had a similar fashion as those of successful young models you’d often see on Garosu street.

It was very different from their stage outfit of a silk shirt and torn denim jeans that emphasized sophistication.

When you think of KK’s fashionista, of course it’s Do Wook, but Do Wook could be considered a ‘pro’ level fashionista who looked good in any style and even matched his normal clothes to the concept without hesitation.

However, Suk Ji Hoon was the type to clearly show his unique style when it came to his everyday wear.

“Um…I dressed like this because you said I can dress as I normally do. Are you sure it’s ok?”

Nervous, Suk Ji Hoon asked Manager Oh Baek Ho who was sitting next to him.

Unlike his free-spirited fashion style, Suk Ji Hoon was the type of person who strictly followed etiquette to the point he still called Manager Oh Back Ho ‘Manager’.

Although the older members felt a little sad when he talked so properly to them despite being fellow members, he was the type to diligently call them “hyung” and strictly follow the older brother-younger brother hierarchy.

He was similar to Do Wook in that sense, and they got along well.

“Yeah. The thing about entertainment shows is…you know since you’ve done it before. There are parts you can’t fake no matter how much you embellish. You have to show yourself just as you are.”

Suk Ji Hoon nodded his head to what Manager Oh Baek Ho said. There were times when Park Tae Hyung seemed like he was the youngest member because of how mature Suk Ji Hoon acted, but Suk Ji Hoon definitely looked young as he was nodding his head.

“If you really end up on the show, they’ll be recording you all day. I think there’s merit to showing yourself just as you are.”

“You think so?”

“Of course”

Oh Baek Ho’s words strengthened Suk Ji Hoon’s resolve.

Today was the day they’d meet with PD Um Woo Suk and have a casting meeting. Today’s meeting determined whether or not Suk Ji Hoon would be a contestant on ‘Camping 48 Hours’.

After calming down the nervous Suk Ji Hoon, Manager Oh Baek Ho took a sip of the Americano he had ordered.

At HIT Entertainment’s internal discussion, Suk Ji Hoon competing on ‘Camping 48 Hours’ was approved without a hitch. They wanted to proactively push for it.

Do Wook’s solo album activities had started anyways. If things, like the release of OKAY’s 2nd album, went as planned, the members wouldn’t have much on their schedule except the concert.

Fan Marketing Team Leader Lee Dae Hyung had expressed his admiration for Manager Oh Baek Ho who moved quickly, saying that if ‘Camping 48 Hours’ was really looking for a contestant it would be good timing and an opportunity from KK’s perspective.

Of course, Manager Oh Baek Ho let it be known that it wasn’t him who came up with the idea to appear on the show or which member to recommend. Team Leader Lee Dae Hyung saw once again why Department Head Jo Anna advised him to get a lot of help from Do Wook.

Once the internal discussions were over, Manager Oh immediately sent word to the director of the entertainment bureau. When he spread the word through someone close to the director of the entertainment bureau that KK was looking to be a regular on an entertainment program, someone from ‘Camping 48 Hours’ contacted the HIT Entertainment department in charge.

Director Jo Myung Gook already had a positive image of KK.

As the director of the entertainment bureau, he at least understood who the big celebrities were and what type of group the top idol group was even if he could not keep up with idols like other young people.

On top of that, his own daughter was a fan of KK. He also knew that Do Wook was the most popular among the members.

Therefore, Director Jo Myung Gook, who used to be all about “name value” yelled, “We’ll go with Kang Do Wook no matter what!” and pushed for Do Wook when he heard major idol band KK wanted to be a regular on an entertainment show.

As for PD Um Woo Suk, both the rapper-turned-entertainer whom Director Jo Myung Gook originally suggested and KK’s Kang Do Wook were a little different than the conditions he was looking for.

‘One of them is too old, and the other is too famous…to give them a friendly image would be a bit… Then again, if I asked to use a young rookie, the director would get angry and not give it a second thought.’

As if they knew PD Um Woo Suk was having these thoughts, HIT Entertainment replied that they wanted to put Suk Ji Hoon instead of Do Wook.

Director Jo Myung Gook and PD Um Woo Suk only remembered hearing of Suk Ji Hoon in passing, he wasn’t someone they really knew.

However, the name ‘KK’ did carry weight.

PD Um Woo Suk, who had looked into Suk Ji Hoon a little, thought that pushing for this direction would actually fit what he was looking for. So as a compromise, Suk Ji Hoon was chosen.

Of course Director Jo Myung Gook stood his ground on ‘since we’re doing it, we have to bring someone at least at Kang Do Wook’s level’, but Director Jo Myung Gook also thought it was at least a compromise.

That was how this meeting came to be.

PD Um Woo Suk, dressed in shabby clothes, entered the café. The main writer of ‘Camping 48 Hours’ was also with him.

Manager Oh Baek Ho and Suk Ji Hoon rose from their seats as they greeted the two.

“Ah, PD Um. Over here!”

“Manager…Oh Baek Ho?

“Yes, that’s me. And over here is Ji Hoon. Suk Ji Hoon.”

At Manager Oh Baek Ho’s introduction, PD Um Woo Suk and the main writer’s gaze fell on Suk Ji Hoon.

“Hello.”

Suk Ji Hoon bowed his head and greeted him. Innocent Suk Ji Hoon was surprised by PD Um Woo Suk’s large face.

If you watched ‘Camping 48 Hours’, PD Um Woo Suk would appear once in a while, but his face looked much bigger than when seeing him on TV.

“I’m Um Woo Suk.”

PD Um Woo Suk held out his hand as he examined young Suk Ji Hoon, who was looking at him.

From PD Um Woo Suk’s perspective, he had to accurately assess if Suk Ji Hoon was the right fit for ‘Camping 48 Hours’ through today’s meeting. It was never easy to bring in a new cast member. The future of ‘Camping 48 Hours’ depended on it.

***

A few days later, the KK members were at the final fan autograph session, which would wrap up their activities.

The fan autograph session, which was taking place at a movie theater in Wang Shim Ri, was also the worst location for an autograph session for fan page masters who took pictures of the members.

“The lighting sucks…”

“Look at this. I set it as high as possible but the picture’s still like this.”

“Man, the video quality is going to be ruined.”

“I might have to just take it with a camera. So frustrating. Why during the last autograph session of all times.”

“Why did they pick a venue like this…”

“I don’t know. They alway have a good streak then mess up like this once in a while.”

“By the way, how many copies did you buy this time?”

“Me?…”

Before the fan autograph session began, the master of Do Wook’s fan page “Shining Do Wook” and the master of Park Tae Hyung’s fan page ‘Visual Suspect’ were excitedly conversing.

“I bought 42 copies. Please don’t tell me you only bought a few copies.”

“Of course not! I bought 45 copies and got selected. When I looked into it, it seemed like 40 copies was the cutoff this time.”

“Really? Wow, our cutoff number got ridiculously high.”

“It’s because they became so popular…I don’t have money so I don’t know if I can go to their next event.”

“It’s hard when they become ShuSue*.”

(Translator’s notes: Abbreviation for Super Star but in Korean accent.)

“Tell me about it.”

To attend the KK fan autograph session, you now had to buy 40 copies of the album unless it was completely decided by a lottery system. It was due to overseas fans who bought 100 copies.

While the fan page masters were complaining, the vibe around them became lively.

“Won―! I love you Won, I, Minji, cameee!”

“Jung Yoon Ki! Yoon Ki oppaaaa~!”

“Oh oh oh oh, Hyung Seooo, over hereeeee~”

The KK members had started to enter. Unlike the screaming fans, the fan page masters grabbed their cameras and were busy taking pictures of the members. Even before the members gave their greetings, the sound of the shutters going off nonstop was loud.

“Please keep it down. Now then, numbers 1 to 10, please come up and get in line.”

After the KK members gave their greetings, fans began to come out and line up under the guidance of the fan signing event host.

“Do Wook’s outfit today is crazy! I want to dedicate myself to him.”

“You already do that, what are you saying?”

The ‘Visual Suspense’ master shook her head at the ‘Shining Do Wook’ master, who did not stop praising Do Wook even as she busily pressed the shutter. Do Wook wasn’t even simply an ‘oppa’ to her. And the camera and lens alone that they were holding cost millions of Won.

As they had always done, the members listened to fans and did their best to follow the fan autograph session schedule.

It was the last fan autograph session of their active period, so they were paying extra attention.

“Here…”

After signing the album jacket the fan held out, Suk Ji Hoon carefully looked at the Post-it that was placed on it.

[Who do you like the most among the members?]

It was one of the questions that Suk Ji Hoon, who was the youngest, was often asked. Normally, he would have jokingly listed off every member except Ahn Hyung Seo.

Honestly, Suk Ji Hoon liked all of them.

First, Park Tae Hyung was genuinely nice. It wasn’t that other members weren’t nice. He wasn’t good at speaking, maybe he was gentle since birth, but he really took care of people.

Jung Yoon Ki was the oldest and, like a leader, was stern, but he was the type to often encourage and lusher the team forward.

Kim Won always gave off positive energy with a bright and pleasant personality. Seeing Kim Won like that seemed to brighten up Suk Ji Hoon’s heart.

Ahn Hyung Seo was older, but he was also the member Suk Ji Hoon was closest with. His silliness made him feel like a friend so they goofed around a lot, but the person he was on the inside, that he showed once in a while, was incredibly deep.

Do Wook went without saying. He was a real team leader and mental support. It was all the members’ opinion that without Do Wook, there would be no KK today.

Suk Ji Hoon felt such a deep affection towards all the members, but for today, after briefly contemplating it, he said Do Wook.

“Do Wook? Are you closest with Do Wook?!”

Suk Ji Hoon was not often seen together with Do Wook. Suk Ji Hoon was usually with Park Tae Hyung or Ahn Hyung Seo.

So when Suk Ji Hoon mentioned Do Wook, the fan was surprised and asked. Cutting off Suk Ji Hoon, who was trying to say something in reply, the fan manager had the fan move on to the next member. The fan, who wasn’t able to hear the answer, was disappointed, but it was inevitable.

Suk Ji Hoon briefly turned his gaze to Do Wook who was sitting at the very front.

Suk Ji Hoon thought about the ‘Camping 48 Hours’ meeting that had happened recently.

The meeting was smoother than he thought. PD Um Woo Suk liked Suk Ji Hoon very much, saying that he was the perfect character he was looking for, considering his age, personality, current status, and background.

In the case of the main writer, he said he’d be happy if there’d be even one person on ‘Camping 48 Hours’ with a heartwarming appearance like him.

The problem was Director Jo Myung Gook. Director Jo Myung Gook wanted to put in the more famous person no matter what. He felt that was where ‘Camping 48 Hours’ fell short compared to other competition programs.

The war of nerves with PD Um Woo Suk, who was trying to not mess up the program’s purpose and vibe, became much better within a few days.

In the end, Suk Ji Hoon became a member of ‘Camping 48 Hours’ under one condition.

They planned on keeping it very tightly hidden until the first shoot and announcing it as a surprise after.

His condition was none other than this.

‘Do Wook’s debut…’

From beginning to end, Suk Ji Hoon got the huge opportunity of being a regular on ‘Camping 48 Hours’ thanks to Do Wook. He was feeling very happy because he got so many congratulations yesterday, but the pressure he felt that he couldn’t tarnish Do Wook or KK’s name was growing just as much.

***

After the fan autograph session was over, Do Wook got in a different car from the other members and headed towards Shin Sa Dong instead of the dormitory.

Fatigue was washing over him because he hadn’t removed his makeup, but his anxiety about who he was meeting up with was higher than his fatigue.

In front of a studio in Sin Sa Dong, Do Wook was sitting in the car, straightening out his clothes that became disheveled from him sitting comfortably, almost laying down.

“Hello, teacher.”

—

Next chapter: Do Wook meets with his old teacher and is faced with another obstacle to overcome.