“Finally, we’re leaving that awful basement behind!”
We, who had suffered so much at the lodge, entered our new accommodations, moved by Kim Dobin’s exclamation. Cameras were already set up to capture the first moments of REVE’s arrival at the new dorm.
Though it wasn’t brand new, the apartment was spacious and tidy. After taking a quick look around, we set our moving boxes down in the living room.
Recalling last year’s fourth-quarter settlements, it wasn’t an entirely expected upgrade. Still, it seemed the agency had pushed itself to secure a slightly better place for us.
However, if I hadn’t insisted on a follow-up to “One Chance” and instead pushed for “All Right All Night” as our next title track, we probably would’ve been stuck in that basement dorm. So I didn’t feel particularly grateful.
As the five of us huddled together in the living room, Gyeon Hajun glanced at the cameras and began a brief tour of the place.
“There are a total of four rooms. One of them will be used as a dressing room, so that leaves three rooms for us. We should pair up, and one person gets a solo room.”
“So, 1-person-per-room is still out of the question.”
“When we move out and live on our own, we can have three rooms each— Ow!”
I quickly shut up as Gyeon Hajun jabbed me in the side. Now that I think about it, I was the only one who had lived independently before. Maybe everyone else preferred the dorm life?
“Alright, we need to decide on the roommates first.”
One room had a large window leading to the balcony, another had a window on the outside wall, and the smallest room had no windows at all.
Still, there were plenty of reasons to put up with the lack of ventilation for the sake of a private room. I could have my own personal space.
In the basement dorm, the three of us over 180cm tall had shared a tiny room and even slept on a single mattress because there was no space for an extra bed. This only increased my craving for privacy.
“Anyone want to take the solo room?”
At my question, everyone except Gyeon Hajun raised their hands in unison. Myself included.
And, as if we all had the same thought, we quickly tried to justify ourselves to the cameras.
“I’ve never really had personal space before, so I’d like to experience it once. No, it’s not about distancing… uh, just, private?”
“It’s not that we don’t get along; it’s just that the previous dorm was the problem.”
“Don’t get the wrong idea. We’ve been unintentionally invading each other’s privacy in a cramped room. So…”
“Yeah, it’s not like I don’t want to room with the members, but having my own space is a long-held dream. So, only children who had their own rooms growing up should bow out.”
Gyeon Hajun had an older brother and sister, Kim Dobin had an older brother, Seo Yehyun had a younger sister, and Ryu Jaehee had two younger brothers.
I was the only one who was an only child. So, that was a clear dig aimed directly at me.
And I had no intention of giving up on the solo room.
“Wait, I don’t get why you guys are making a fuss. We had a reason to share a mattress. But you two youngest, what’s your excuse?”
“Well, our room was smaller, wasn’t it?”
“Look, those of you who had a bed to yourself, step down.”
“Anyone over 180cm should step down too. The solo room’s already small; we don’t want it to feel even more cramped.”
“I’ll find a way to manage the space, so don’t worry about me, dear youngest members.”
We went back and forth about who would get the solo room for a while. But since it seemed like we were just going to show signs of discord in front of the camera, I tried to wrap things up as the leader.
“Let’s give the solo room to whoever comes up with the most convincing reason.”
They all looked at me like, ‘Who made you the judge?’ but I discreetly pointed to the camera, and any dissenting sparks were snuffed out.
Kim Dobin was the first to raise his hand, confidently spouting nonsense.
“I have a condition that makes it impossible for me to sleep unless I’m alone!”
“You’ve slept just fine until now. Denied.”
I shot him down, and Kim Dobin slumped his shoulders. Not that it was any of my concern.
Seo Yehyun, with a grave expression, raised his hand as if making a serious declaration.
“I have deeply etched memories of three grown men sharing one mattress.”
“I shared that experience too. Denied.”
With me around, that wasn’t going to earn any sympathy votes.
When I shifted my gaze to Ryu Jaehee, he rolled his eyes and winked before tossing out a half-baked excuse.
“Well, I am the beloved youngest of REVE.”
“Denied. And no one said you were beloved.”
At least try to put in some effort with your excuses.
“If that’s the case, maybe I should get the solo room for some musical inspiration—”
“Denied! Denied!”
“Isn’t your judgment too subjective?”
“Let’s keep things fair, guys.”
Before I could even finish speaking, they all pounced, and my subtle attempts to claim the solo room for myself fell apart.
We decided to settle the room arrangements with the most classic of games—rock-paper-scissors.
But since we didn’t need to differentiate between winners and losers, we played with a slightly different rule.
“Those who throw the same hand will share a room.”
“What if we get three rock, two scissors or something?”
“We keep going until it’s 2:2:1.”
After announcing the rules, a tense psychological battle began.
“I’m throwing rock, so if you want to room with me, throw rock too. Got it?”
“I’m throwing scissors, so everyone avoid scissors.”
“Let’s be honest and throw what we said.”
“C’mon, that’s no fun.”
Only Gyeon Hajun, who wasn’t after the solo room, stayed calm. Usually, the guy with the least desire for something ends up getting it—that’s how clichés work.
“Ready, set, go—Rock, paper, scissors!”
After five rounds of intense play, the room assignments were set.
Seo Yehyun and I would share a room.
Gyeon Hajun and Ryu Jaehee would share another.
Kim Dobin got the solo room.
Gyeon Hajun defied the cliché, and Kim Dobin was the sole beneficiary.
“Dobin, let’s switch rooms. If you take my room, I’ll give you a hundred thousand won.”
“Pass.”
“A hundred thousand won plus a solo song.”
“I like the solo room.”
Despite all the temptations laid before him, Kim Dobin stood his ground.
“You’ll oversleep without someone to wake you up. You’re the type that needs a roommate.”
“Ooooh, accept the result!”
As I stealthily gave a scalp massage to Kim Dobin, who was gloating about his solo room, Gyeon Hajun suggested, “How about we switch rooms once a month to prevent falling into a routine?”
Kim Dobin’s lips pouted in displeasure.
Ryu Jaehee, having also failed to get a solo room, agreed enthusiastically.
“But switching every month is a hassle, so let’s make it once a quarter.”
“That works too.”
If we keep switching, there’s bound to be a chance at the solo room at least once a year.
“I’m against it!”
“Hey, people shouldn’t be isolated. You need to see each other, talk, and interact.”
“Then what about people who live alone?”
Even this usually mindless guy could turn logical when it came to protecting his solo room.
Since I couldn’t respond, Kim Dobin confidently raised his voice and inched towards Gyeon Hajun.
Watching Kim Dobin, Ryu Jaehee shook his head in disbelief.
“I bet Dobin will complain about being lonely and ask to switch rooms in a month. You have no idea how much I suffered rooming with him.”
Before my regression, when REVE moved out of the basement into an apartment with three rooms like this, Seo Yehyun always got the solo room.
No one except me had a problem with that decision.
At least, that’s what it seemed like.
So now I was curious to see how long it would take before Ryu Jaehee’s prediction came true.
Leaving only the clothes that would go in the dressing room, I carried the rest of my things to the bedroom.
The room Seo Yehyun and I would be using had a window on the outside wall. As soon as we were alone, an awkward atmosphere settled in.
Now, if we fought, there would be no Gyeon Hajun to mediate.
Why did this guy have to pick the same hand as me and cause all this?
“Hey, which bed do you want?”
“I’ll take this side.”
Seo Yehyun picked the bed on the right-hand side.
Even though having Seo Yehyun as a roommate was like a bomb waiting to go off, it was still better than three of us sharing one mattress.
Thanks to our cramped basement living situation, we’d been forced to learn each other’s habits and patterns. It wasn’t going to be a big problem.
I roughly finished unpacking, then flopped onto my bed, fiddling with my phone.
Right on cue, the weekly quest alert chimed.
[From. Eden]
Daydream, how have you been? We’ve finally moved into our new dorm. My roommate is Yehyun.
— I stopped mid-sentence.
I hesitated, wondering if mentioning my roommate in the post would count as a spoiler. But if I didn’t include it, I wouldn’t be able to meet the minimum two-line requirement.
After a moment’s thought, I decided to play it safe and keep the post vague.
[From. Eden]
Daydream, did you all sleep well? We’ve finally moved into our new place. It’s a pretty spacious apartment, much better than our old semi-basement.
That should do it. No need to risk giving away too much information. I hit send and stretched out on the bed, feeling a rare sense of contentment.
Even though the roommate situation didn’t go as planned, at least we had all made it out of the cramped semi-basement alive. And in the end, that was enough for now.
***
Contrary to my worries, since I was busy preparing for our repackaged album and full-length album in the studio, I hardly ever ran into Seo Yehyun. Thanks to that, the dorm was just a place to sleep or occasionally have breakfast made by Gyeon Hajun.
But since I finished this week’s work earlier than planned, I had some rare downtime at the dorm today.
I was lounging on the couch, flipping through TV channels with the remote, when the dorm door opened, and Kim Dobin and Seo Yehyun walked in together.
“Honestly, today’s session was a bit tough for you, hyung. But if we’re talking about difficulty, it wasn’t too-”
“Hey, you’re back?”
Kim Dobin, who had been chatting excitedly, clamped his mouth shut.
“By the way, I heard from Ryu Jaehee that you two have been hanging out a lot lately.”
At my words, Kim Dobin and Seo Yehyun exchanged glances. It seemed like they thought I was trying to pick a fight.
I was just curious about the reason behind this unexpected pairing.
Seo Yehyun didn’t really have anyone in REVE that he was particularly close to. Despite things getting a bit better recently, we had historically not gotten along. He still seemed awkward around Gyeon Hajun, and given the age difference, he wasn’t exactly close with the younger members either.
But lately, he’d been spending time with Kim Dobin, of all people—not Ryu Jaehee, who enjoyed socializing and building connections. How could I not be curious?
“It’s nothing,” Seo Yehyun said, shaking his head before heading into our room.
Pausing my lyric writing on my phone, I wrapped an arm around Kim Dobin’s shoulder and dragged him over to the sofa.
“What’s going on? Spill it.”
“I’m a man of honor, so I have a duty to keep Yehyun hyung’s secrets—gah! No, seriously, Yehyun hyung specifically told me not to tell you!”
I gave him a gentle headlock—no, a neck massage—which made him squirm with extreme comfort before he hesitantly began to speak.
“Well, the thing is…”
***
If you want to support the translation and the translator, please buy a coffee ♥︎
