a/n: guys, kendrick's diss has made me make a diss that minmin will be using in the future...future as in like chapter 120 LMFAO bruh I'm wondering if i should just bomb yall with chapters because I'm excited to tell u things I'm writing rn but its like 60 chapters ahead bahaha
but nah I'll be patient bc i know if i do that ill go on like a two month hiatus
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[ Park Moondae's POV ]
Ryu Chungwoo and Keun Sejin, who I thought would join immediately, were nowhere to be seen. I closed the door and sat on my bed.
Seungmin was lounging on the shared desk.
I wished I could drink before dealing with this, but there was no way there'd be any alcohol in the dorm of an idol group that was just about to debut.
Pitying this, I sighed, "Hyung, you know that you're going to have an interview with the company sooner or later, right? It's not a situation that can be avoided just by coming into the room."
Under the pressure of Seungmin's gaze, Lee Sejin finally spoke.
"...I don't know."
"What is it that you don't know?" I asked.
"What I want to do..."
"...? Isn't it too late to worry about your career now?"
"Do you want to go back to your former agency and continue acting?"
"...I don't want to go back."
"But you want to still act."
"...Isn't that obvious?" Lee Sejin sighed painfully as he buried his face in his palms. "I never thought about becoming an idol in the first place..."
I clicked my tongue.
"I guess you participated in Idol Inc. because of your former agency."
"That's right...I took a long break from acting, so the agency wanted me to do it before I came back..."
"..."
"You were trying awfully hard for someone who doesn't want to debut," Seungmin said nonchalantly.
Agreeing, I checked Lee Sejin's status window. His dance stat, which started at grade F, had risen to D+. That wasn't the growth of someone who didn't have any interest in dancing or being an idol.
I had a rough idea of his situation.
"It turned out to be fun for you," I observed.
Seeing the stunned look on his face, I assumed I was right.
"It was fun, so you worked harder without realizing it," I continued.
"It felt good being on stage," Lee Sejin muttered after a while. "I thought I wanted to continue, but I also want to continue acting..."
"...? Do it."
I wasn't sure why he was worrying about something like that.
"In a couple of months or years," I explained, "the agency will probably insert individual activities. You could keep being an idol and do some acting in the future. Or if you want, you could just not renew your contract in five years and go back to acting only."
Lee Sejin lowered his head with a bitter smile.
"I can't. You don't know what my former agency is like. Dream K...if I stay here, I don't know what will explode out of their resentment."
The news of Lee Sejin being a drug dealer flashed through my mind.
"Do you have any weaknesses?"
If the talk of drugs came out, I would've recommended right away that he withdraw. Fortunately, Lee Sejin frowned.
"I didn't lead a careless life. I mean that they will create some form of plausible tabloid gossip. It's already happened to some others..."
"What would be the rumor they make for you?" Seungmin asked.
"Mine is obvious. They'll say that joining the audition was just for my acting comeback and say I didn't want to be an idol," Lee Sejin muttered bitterly. "At any rate...I was added last minute. Public opinion...a lot of people say TeSTAR is better off without me...because I'm no good."
There was a silence as he took a deep breath.
"My agency will probably make use of that and set the mood. They'll make T1 make me resign..."
I shrugged.
"Those comments about you will weaken when we debut."
"...It's no use consoling me."
"No, I'm just stating the truth."
Lee Sejin looked up from his lap, confused. So I said, "Our comeback clashes with VTIC. Our fans will be uniting internally to keep VTIC fans in check."
When a powerful enemy awaited outside, the inside was bound to unite.
"Besides, if hyung leaves, someone else will be the target. That's just how it is."
Wanting to get rid of someone who looked the weakest was common in the idol industry. It wasn't happening because of him as a person specifically but because that's how the world worked.
"Still," he shook his head, "there's no way to stop my former agency right now. I can't block gossip at its source."
"Yes you can," Seungmin stated.
I guess he was thinking about the bullying scandal he went through since he sounded blunt and confident. But it looked like he wasn't particularly inclined on helping Lee Sejin because he didn't explain further.
I took over the conversation again.
"Hyung, spread the truth beforehand."
"...Beforehand?"
"You can post an article saying you were forced to participate by your agency but found your aptitude. Make sure to emphasize that they forced you. And thanks to the audition, you escaped. Then if they try to post something about Tnet forcing you to participate, it won't work."
"Then your fans can defend you."
Lee Sejin was silent for a moment with his mouth open.
"...What have you been doing after you dropped out?"
"I joined the audition."
It wasn't said explicitly, but it was obvious what he was thinking. I don't understand why everyone was thinking that I was part of the NIS*. There was even a funny look on Seungmin's face, even when he came up with the same answer as me.
*National Intelligence strategy
Anyway, the situation was sorted out, and T1 and Ryu Chungwoo could take care of the rest.
"Be sure to write it in your own handwriting," I added. "Post it on our official SNS."
Then I left the room with Seungmin to give him some time.
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The internet was still boggling with the drama between Dream K and T1 the next morning.
- Ah, I'm tired bc of Lee Sejin. Let's just do it with the seven of them
- A week before their debut...what is going on...
- It's a double settlement ;;
But when Lee Sejin posted his handwritten letter on the official TeSTAR SNS, things exploded again.
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[ Hello. I'm Lee Sejin, a member of Testar ]
: I'm writing this to convey my thoughts about the latest news and stories...
...Due to such an excessive schedule, I stopped acting as a child actor due to health problems. I think it was hard for a 12-year-old to handle a schedule where he couldn't sleep 3 hours a day...
...I turned down the offer of Idol Inc. several times because I had never been on stage before. But I participated the program under great pressure from explanations such as 'If you don't appear on this program, you won't be able to work.'...
...I, who was passive regarding peer relationships, had so much fun making good friends and performing with them. I have thankfully had the chance to debut, and now it has become a very precious opportunity for me...(more)
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The article continued along those lines. So of course, even the TeSTAR fans who were hardly favorable to Lee Sejin, became sympathetic.
- ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
- at 12 years...wow...his former agency is crazy
- T1 is right this time
- Sejin joined Testar so abruptly that I wondered if he really wanted to do this...I'm sorry ㅠㅠ
- I want to see Sejin acting, but I want to see him do what he wants to do foremost
People who enjoyed ostracizing Lee Sejin were pushed to the side. There were still some sarcastic remarks, but they were hidden to a strangely successful degree.
Riding with the favorable tide, Tnet handled Dream K well and was able to keep Lee Sejin A in TeSTAR.
And as if to drive the wedge, another teaser was released at midnight.