‘Damn, why is the verse part so awkward?’
After another long day of schedules, I rubbed my dry eyes and opened the door to the semi-basement dorm. According to the manager, the company was considering cutting our planned three-week promotional activities down to two.
‘Did it really get shortened to two weeks before the regression?’
If so, I might have to pull an all-nighter. Should I rewrite the verse instead of sticking to the old song?
It was past three in the morning, so I tiptoed to my room to avoid waking the members. As soon as I carefully opened the door, Kyeon Hajun sat up.
“What, you weren’t sleeping?”
“Why do you keep coming back so late? Where have you been going by yourself?”
Yawning, I replied to Hajun’s question.
“I’ll tell you later.”
When I avoided answering, Seo Yehyun’s voice came from under a pile of blankets.
“You’re not secretly seeing a girlfriend, are you?”
“Geez, you weren’t asleep either? And shouldn’t you ask if I even have a girlfriend first?”
While you guys are sound asleep, I’m out here breaking my back trying to save this team. You’d better thank me later.
This time, it’s going to be me, not Seo Yehyun, who’ll be the MVP.
Since the two were already up, I took a quick shower and lay down on my bed to check this week’s weekly quests.
[☑ Weekly Quests!]
[▶ Post selfies and messages on official SNS at least 5 times a week (Initial intention +2) ▶ Search fan reactions at least 6 times a week (Initial intention +2)
▶ Post selfies and messages on the FROM board of the fan café at least 4 times a week (Initial intention +2) ▶ Greet fans warmly on the way to and from schedules (Initial intention +2)]
I’ve already posted three messages on the FROM board, so if I post one more, I’ll complete this week’s quest. I’ve set alarms to check fan reactions daily, just in case. If I continue greeting fans on the way to and from schedules, I should recover 6 points of initial intention this week.
Just as I turned off the quest window and closed my eyes to get some sleep, Kyeon Hajun turned on the room light. Frowning, I grumbled in a hoarse voice.
“Jun, let me sleep.”
“We have a pre-recording this morning. Get up and wake the others. Yehyun hyung, you get up too.”
Oh right, the pre-recording. I’d completely forgotten about it while preparing for the next album.
Groaning, I dragged myself out of bed. Isn’t there a time-skip function in this system for a failed album anyway?
[Doing your best in all activities, whether successful or not, is part of maintaining your initial intention.]
Yawn, I get it. Who asked?
***
From the early dawn before sunrise, we waited for a long time before successfully completing the pre-recording for the music show. Our next schedule was a radio show, which we barely secured thanks to another artist’s cancellation.
“This is ‘Noon’s Music Trip with Lee Sangho’. In the second part, we have as our guests a newly debuted talented rookie boy group, REVE.”
“One, two, Dream of me! Hello, we are REVE!”
At my signal, the members simultaneously greeted in English, “Dream of me.”
After each member introduced themselves briefly, it was time to promote our song. The DJ skimmed through the script and asked,
“What kind of song is your debut track ‘Come to the Universe’?”
That’s a song released two years ago by a hit girl group. I know it’s annoying to have an unknown failed idol group here, but can’t you at least read the script properly?
“Yes, our debut album’s title track, ‘Come to My Universe,’ is about an astronaut who loses connection and wanders through space until they are guided by someone’s voice to a new universe…”
I emphasized the title deliberately and mechanically recited the introduction written by the agency.
Did they come up with the concept by watching Yuri Gagarin videos or something?
“A lonely space journey, how unique. The lyrics are very poetic and match the space concept well.”
Right, if it weren’t for the over-the-top space concept pushed by our agency, we might have adapted to the space travel theme better.
“I’m really curious about your live performance now. After this commercial break, we’ll see REVE’s performance!”
As soon as the lively CM song played, the DJ took off his headset and picked up his phone, muttering loudly enough for us to hear,
“They don’t even bring lunch boxes here?”
The members’ expressions turned uncomfortable, like sitting on a bed of nails. I clicked my tongue seeing this.
What do you expect from a newly debuted small-time group with less than five hundred fan café members?
The DJ maintained his uninterested attitude until the end of the radio show. Even when we said our goodbyes at the end of the second part, he didn’t look up from his phone, waving dismissively.
I subtly raised my middle finger behind my clasped hands as we bowed politely.
Just wait until we make it big.
[A bad gesture has been detected.]
[Initial Intention -2]
I drew a sharp breath at the stinging sensation. Seriously? I wasn’t caught, so why dock my initial determination? Isn’t it only fair if I’m not caught?
The mood in the car on the way back to the dorm was gloomy.
I seemed to be the only one unaffected by the blatant disregard, likely because my mental strength was solidified over two and a half years of being a failed idol.
Amid the heavy atmosphere, my phone alarm buzzed.
<Time to search for fan reactions>
I had set alarms to ensure I didn’t forget, ever since I missed completing the search once and it felt like coughing up blood. There were only two search terms: REVE, and Eden.
As I scrolled through the feed, the word “fansign” caught my eye. Since we were about to have our first fansign event, it was highly likely that the REVE mentioned was us.
yangkiminnam_searching @kpopdol
Can someone share photos from REVE’s fansign?
│
heidi @hi_everydi
Who is REVE?
│
yangkiminnam_searching @kpopdol
They just debuted. I’m going to see them.
Found a new yangkiminnam
(photo)
│
heidi @hi_everydi
Why aren’t they popular with those visuals?
│
yangkiminnam_searching @kpopdol
Their songs suck. The styling is bad too. Seems like the agency is a mess.
│
heidi @hi_everydi
Ah… Then I can’t support them.
As expected, Seo Yehyun’s picture was right there.
I recalled the nickname he had before the regression. Our hardworking “young head of the family” had been pulling his weight since debut.
‘Our title song does suck…’
I couldn’t disagree with the bitter comment.
I wondered if there was at least one decent track, and as I went through the album’s tracks, I spotted a song I had completely forgotten about.
The debut album was terrible from the title track to the other tracks, but there was one, just one decent song.
The last track, which I wrote and composed.
Since I had experience in the underground scene, I knew the basics of writing and composing.
I wanted at least one of my songs in the debut album, so I reworked a rap mixtape from my underground days into a song and managed to persuade the agency to include it in the album.
Of course, I only seriously started writing and producing songs during the time I had plenty of free time as a failed idol, so this song wasn’t up to my current standards.
But it was too good to be lumped with the rest of the subpar tracks in the album.
Before the regression, the first album flopped, and the song was buried.
‘Didn’t REVE later experience a resurgence, and this song got re-evaluated as the only decent track from the first album? Probably?’
Should I try promoting this song?
Thanks to the weekly quest that forced me to post regularly on the fan café, I was regarded as a communicative member among our few fans, alongside Jaehee.
[From. Eden]
Fans, how are you? I can now call you Daydreams instead of just fans.
I saw a comment today saying our song sucks, and I couldn’t disagree, which was upsetting. So here’s the best song from our album.
p.s. Written and composed by Yoon Eden
https://yxxtu.be/SDFJPEx42
(One Chance_audio_video)
Comments 13
– Eden, you don’t have to use such formal greetings… I’m not that old…
– Who said the song sucks!!!???
– The song is really good!! Why wasn’t this the title track ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– Written and composed by Yoon Eden?? I didn’t know our boy was a songwriter
– I knew the agency was clueless when they put the boys in white jumpsuits like they were in a sponge experiment. They had this song and chose ‘Twinkle Twinkle’ as the title track?
└But ‘Come to My Universe’ is still our boys’ song. Don’t call it badㅜ
└Even Eden oppa couldn’t disagree that it sucksㅠ Honestly, ‘Come to My Universe’ is bad objectively (ugh
– This song is too good to be buried. I’m going to promote it.
(See more comments)
I chuckled as I read through the comments, and Ryu Jaehee tapped my arm.
“Hyung, why do you always start your From posts with such a formal greeting?”
“‘Hello’ is five characters, ‘How have you been?’ is eleven. Got it?”
As I explained kindly, even counting the characters on my fingers, Ryu Jaehee’s expression turned rather peculiar.
“Just say it’s a concept. Don’t give such mundane reasons.”
I had nothing else to say, but the quest required more than two lines to count, and without sincerity, my initial determination would decrease, so I had no choice, kid.
I posted the same message on the official SNS account, attaching the video link as well.
If it becomes a hit, great. If not, well, we’ll just win with the next album.
***
Kim, a typical K-pop fan from South Korea, had been a devoted fan for seven years. After a while, she started noticing her idols, now seasoned veterans, losing their spark and gaining some weight, preparing to become someone else’s obsession. She longed for a fresh, lively idol group with that unmistakable glimmer in their eyes.
Enter REVE, the new idol group that appeared before her. Seeing REVE, who secured the first slot on the music show, Kim’s parents commented,
“Do they work in a semiconductor factory or something?”
“Oh dear, why are modern songs so tacky?”
Despite the crude outfits and pitiful styling, Kim couldn’t help but be drawn to Seo Yehyun’s face, which shone through it all. Deciding to leave her old idols behind, she joined REVE’s fan club.
A week after joining, her bias shifted. Though she found the cute youngest member, Yoo Jae, charming with his daily interactions on official SNS and the fan café, her new favorite was the leader, Yoon Eden. Despite his cool appearance, he had an adorable contrast, often starting his posts with “I hope this message finds you well.” Eden also had a tear mole, which Kim adored.
The fan café, which felt more like a small club, and the official SNS account, which struggled to get more than ten shares, fueled Kim’s sense of duty to promote this idol group.
“Our boys have perfect faces and bodies that could stand out anywhere!”
The main problem was their embarrassing outfits and tacky title track. As a new group, they had no notable videos or SNS captures to attract new fans. Kim sighed as she saw the music video clips that had such poor quality they even overshadowed Seo Yehyun’s incredible visuals.
Cursing the incompetent agency, Kim rushed to read her bias’s latest “FROM” post.
“Who called the song bad…! Well, it is bad….”
She started typing an angry comment but deleted it with a bitter smile. Eden’s post today included a YouTube audio video of a B-side track.
Had this song always been there? Despite being a fan, Kim hadn’t bothered listening to the B-sides due to the shock of the title track.
“Wow, did Eden compose this?”
Great, she could promote him as a singer-songwriter. Of course, the song had to be good enough for that to work.
With little expectation, Kim played the YouTube audio video, her expression turning to astonishment as the song progressed.
Is the agency crazy? They had a song like this but chose a song like “Twinkle Eyes” as the title track?
‘Yes, this is it. I’ll promote this song.’
Finally finding a point to promote, Kim, a K-pop fan of ten years, felt her determination blaze anew.
