After more than ten hours of grueling ISAC filming, I arrived at the dorm, took a shower, and collapsed straight onto my bed.
At some point, my phone suddenly started ringing like crazy, but I didn’t even have the energy to check it. Did my number get leaked online? Ugh, changing my number would be such a hassle.
I buried my face into my pillow, just breathing, when Seo Yehyun, who had just finished washing up and entered the room, casually spoke.
“Hey, Yoon Eden. Happy birthday.”
I barely managed to move my heavy body, rolling over once. Blinking at the ceiling, which was finally visible past my blanket, I looked up at Seo Yehyun and asked,
“It’s my birthday today?”
“Yeah, it’s past midnight, so it’s August 1st. Have you seriously forgotten your own birthday now?”
At his scolding, I chuckled and slowly replied.
“Make sure to tell Jun. I’m the kind of guy who forgets not just your birthday, but my own too…”
“You’re nothing if not consistent.”
Seo Yehyun responded in a slightly exasperated voice.
Since I was dead tired, I figured I’d receive my birthday wishes after getting some sleep.
Just as I was about to close my eyes again, a familiar system notification sound rang in my ears.
[Surprise QUEST★]
[▶ Take a verification photo with your subway birthday advertisement!
Details: Fans have put up a subway advertisement to celebrate your birthday! Take a verification shot in front of it and show your appreciation for their love.
Reward: +5 Intinal Intention Points, Random Ticket
Deadline: 08.01 PM 23:59:59
※ A penalty will be applied if you fail to take a verification photo with your subway birthday advertisement!]
Looks like they put up a birthday ad for me. Even before my regression, Rev was mostly Seo Yehyun’s one-top, but we weren’t total nobodies. As a second-tier idol group, we had received a few subway advertisements before.
So while I was grateful, it wasn’t exactly new or deeply moving. I’d experienced it before, after all.
The best time to take a verification shot with a subway ad was in the early morning when there were no people around.
‘Who should I take with me?’
Unless I planned to set up a tripod and take a selfie, I needed at least one member to come along and take the picture.
Gyeon Ha-jun must be exhausted from reaching the wrestling finals. Ryu Jae-hee would be tired from running the relay. And Kim Dobin, who contributed absolutely nothing, was terrible at taking pictures.
That left only one option…
“Hyung, you’re not that tired, right?”
“No, I am tired.”
“No, you’re not. All you did was stand still and shoot arrows.”
“Do you even know how much muscle activity is involved in drawing a bowstring? Not to mention the concentration required.”
“And do you know how much muscle activity is needed for a dunk? Huh?”
“Wait, why are we even arguing about muscle activity right now?”
Right. Somewhere along the way, the conversation had completely derailed. Scratching my cheek, I got to the point.
“Come with me to take a verification photo for my subway birthday ad.”
“Right now?”
“No, not now. In a little while, at dawn.”
Seo Yehyun, who had practically collapsed onto his bed, buried his face into his pillow and mumbled.
“I don’t know. If I wake up.”
“Don’t worry. If you don’t wake up, I’ll make sure you do.”
“You’re ruthless…”
Just in case, I set five different alarms before finally falling asleep.
I must have been really exhausted because the moment I closed my eyes, my alarm seemed to ring immediately.
The time felt like only five minutes had passed, but when I checked, five whole hours had flown by.
Dragging my heavy body out of bed, I went over to Seo Yehyun’s bed and shook him hard.
“Hyung, wake up.”
With a voice thick with drowsiness, I tried to rouse him, but he just pulled his blanket over his head.
“Just… five more minutes…”
I blasted a loud heavy metal song right next to his ear, and Seo Yehyun jolted up, shaking his head furiously.
“I’m going right back to sleep after this…”
“Yeah, me too. Let’s just get this over with.”
Since it was too early to call our manager, we hailed a cab instead.
When we arrived at the subway station, a large electronic billboard came into view.
A massive advertisement with my face on it, celebrating my birthday.
Even though I knew I had received one before my regression, I had only gone to see it in person once. And back then, it had been a much smaller ad.
I stood there, staring blankly at the billboard when Seo Yehyun spoke up.
“I get that you’re touched, but let’s take the photo first.”
His words snapped me out of it, and I quickly positioned myself so the screen was clearly visible in the shot.
We successfully took the verification photo and returned to the dorm. The moment we got back, without a word, we both collapsed onto our beds and fell asleep again.
When I woke up again, it was 10 AM.
Rubbing my unwilling eyes roughly with the back of my hand, I stepped out of my room, greeted by the savory smell of seaweed soup.
In the kitchen, I saw Gyeon Ha-jun busily cooking.
At the dining table, the maknaes were diligently setting out side dishes and utensils. I plopped down in my seat and asked,
“Why is Dobin only using one hand?”
“He says he got muscle soreness from shooting arrows yesterday,” Ryu Jae-hee answered on his behalf.
Wow. Even people who shot three consecutive bullseyes didn’t get muscle soreness, but the guy who scored zero did?
“Don’t your bodies feel heavy? I’m totally wrecked from fatigue and muscle pain.”
“If you feel that way, then what about Ryu Jae-hee, who did archery and ran the relay?”
“Jae-hee’s young.”
“You’re one year older than Jae-hee, and two years younger than me, you brat.”
How could a kid who still had a 1 at the front of his age be talking like this?
“On my birthday, I’m pretty sure the seaweed soup had chicken breast in it…”
Looking at the beef seaweed soup on the table, Kim Dobin grumbled. At his complaint, which was close to a picky comment, I clicked my tongue while picking up my spoon.
“Just eat what you’re given and stop complaining.”
“I wasn’t complaining; I was merely making a statement about fairness…”
“Why are you bringing up fairness over the ingredients in a soup?”
His increasing backtalk meant that our little Dobin was getting more comfortable with me. Since our relationship improvement score had risen alongside his backtalk, I decided to let it slide.
“When I went grocery shopping yesterday, the beef brisket for soup happened to be on sale. I’ll put beef in the soup for your next birthday, Dobin.”
At Gyeon Hajun’s kind words, Kim Dobin hurriedly shook his head, saying it was fine and that he was just making a passing comment.
After eating, I replied to the flood of birthday messages from acquaintances. The length of my responses was directly proportional to how close I was with them.
There were plenty of old classmates who hadn’t spoken to me in years but were suddenly sending birthday messages. Those who hadn’t messaged me when I was struggling as a failed idol in my previous life were immediately filtered out.
For the ones who had reached out even back then, I made sure to send heartfelt replies.
To the older guys from the underground scene who suggested meeting up, I gave vague responses. To the seniors who joked about giving me birthday punches, I replied that I had a live broadcast today but would treat them to a meal tomorrow.
There were also some unexpected people who had sent messages—like KICKS’ nepotism recruit or G1. Lee Jiwon even texted me, saying he had sent a package, but it would arrive late due to shipping delays.
After calling my parents to tell them I’d visit during Chuseok and to thank them for giving birth to me, I wrapped up the conversation.
Once the company-arranged birthday livestream ended, I was led to a room filled with birthday support gifts from fans.
Recalling the last fan post I saw before my regression—accusing me of “scamming fans with birthday support and then quitting”—left me with a strange feeling.
“Just take the luxury items, electronics, watches, and accessories back to the dorm first. Put the music production equipment in your studio.”
My manager effortlessly categorized the gifts and handed them to me.
“Take this too.”
Seeing the gift I gestured toward, my manager chuckled and patted my back. “You’ve grown up, huh?”
Most of the accessories, clothes, and shoes matched my style perfectly.
Since they were things I usually wore, posting a proof shot wouldn’t be difficult.
After organizing the gifts in my room, I took out the one I had asked my manager to set aside.
“Wow, a photobook!”
Ryu Jaehee, who had approached without me noticing, plopped down next to me and started flipping through the photobook.
“Isn’t it amazing? That these moments I’ve already forgotten are captured like this?”
“Wasn’t this at WAMA airport? Right? The shearling jacket!”
“Looks like it.”
Since I hadn’t even hit my first debut anniversary yet, the photobook was quite thin.
Once the pages with my photos ended, there were handwritten messages from fans—some short, some as long as letters.
Reading each one carefully, a faint smile unknowingly appeared on my lips.
“For the birthday support proof shot, use this instead of the other stuff, hyung.”
Handing me a sticky note and a pen, Ryu Jaehee suggested it. After a brief moment of thought, I scribbled down a sentence.
“If you’re writing something like that, you should at least add a heart.”
“Ah, what’s with the heart?”
“If you can’t draw one, I’ll do it for you.”
Snatching the pen from my hand, Ryu Jaehee drew a heart beneath my sentence.
“I’m surprised you even wrote something like this, hyung.”
He snickered as I wordlessly took the sticky note back and stuck it below the “I love you!” message.
Click.
The sound of the phone camera echoed.
After posting the subway birthday ad proof shot, group photos with the members, and support gift proof shots on social media, I hesitated upon seeing the birthday messages dedicated to me.
Today wasn’t supposed to be a search quest day, but I paused writing my post to look up my name and read the birthday messages one by one.
#HappyEdenDay
#SummerYouth_Eden’sTwentyOne
The blue hashtags on every post struck me deeply.
Technically, if I included my past life, I’d be twenty-eight.
***
@revedream
“My babyㅠㅠㅠㅠ Proof shot of the birthday supportㅠㅠㅠ”
“He even wrote ‘I love you, too’ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ and that heart below it, what is thatㅠㅠ”
(Attached: Support_ProofShot.jpg)
Shares: 5004 | Quotes: 402 | Likes: 7108
@revedream
“He even stuck it right below the ‘I love you!’ message. Was that his reply to us? He’s too sweet, I’m going to die…”
Shares: 641 | Quotes: 123 | Likes: 1024
***
“So, you called me over today just to brag about unboxing G1’s present?”
“Oh, come on, don’t I know you? You’re curious too, be honest.”
“Yeah, I kinda am.”
Lying lazily in my studio chair, Yongcheol hyung admitted it with a chuckle.
“What do you think it is?”
“I hope it’s speakers. Those 850,000 won ones are absolute trash.”
“A true craftsman doesn’t blame their tools. You know that?”
“I don’t. I’m picky about my tools.”
As we exchanged pointless banter, the package finally arrived.
Unwrapping it, Yongcheol hyung and I both gaped at the speakers now sitting in my studio.
It was impossible not to recognize them.
This was the exact model I had debated buying before giving up because it exceeded my budget.
“Damn, why is this guy so generous?”
Dropping over 2 million won on a birthday gift for a younger colleague?
When was G1’s birthday again…?
***
If you want to support the translation and the translator, please buy a coffee 🤍
