Chapter 32: The Night Before (2)
December 12th.
That was the day Ji Ah-yeong officially became a trainee at Letter.
Before that, she had spent her time singing alone in karaoke rooms and playing her guitar by herself.
But her dream of becoming a singer had been with her long before then—so long that it felt like a distant memory.
The reason she only became a trainee so late was because of her uncle, Ji Hyun-wook.
-“Ah-yeong, the entertainment industry isn’t as glamorous and happy as you think.”
He told her to wait.
To look for another dream—at least until she became an adult and her birthday had passed.
He kept saying there was still plenty of time.
There was plenty of time left…
“Wasn’t Heli-ssi so kind?”
After the evaluations were over, all the trainees gathered in the waiting room.
Ji Ah-yeong turned her head toward the sudden comment.
Two trainees were chatting nearby.
“Yeah, yeah. Super kind! And his voice is like pure honey. Oh, what did he say to you?”
“He said I sang well! Like, really well! This is the first time a producer has ever said that to me. I heard he’s in charge of Lilac this time… Ahhh! Am I about to debut?!”
…Heli.
Heli had told her not to lose her color.
It was the exact opposite of what Kim Yo-han had said to her two weeks ago.
Kim Yohan had scolded her to stop trying to show off and to humble herself before the music.
Which one was right?
Ji Ah-yeong didn’t know.
She didn’t know enough yet to decide for sure.
“Me too, me too! He said my low notes were a little unstable, but he explained so gently how I could improve…”
All around, trainees were talking about Heli.
Their faces were so bright, glowing with optimism as they shared their stories.
Trainee.
A faint smile curved Ji Ah-yeong’s lips.
But her eyes—her eyes still held a deep, melancholy sorrow that refused to fade.
She memorized the names and faces of all the company trainees, hoping she could befriend them someday.
But the label of being Ji Hyun-wook’s niece became an impenetrable shell—a hard barrier that allowed no affection, envy, jealousy, or even simple interactions.
That shell isolated her, turning her into nothing more than an outsider.
The one and only friend she’d ever had here was now gone, having debuted at a larger agency and moved on.
“…Ah.”
A soft gasp escaped Ji Ah-yeong’s lips.
She had been staring blankly at two trainees chatting happily, unable to hide her envy.
Then, their eyes met.
Suddenly, she grew tense.
‘Will they talk to me?’
Her heart pounded loudly, each beat thudding like a drum. Her mouth felt dry.
She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to smooth it down, and cleared her throat in case she needed to respond smoothly.
“…Let’s go, let’s go.”
But instead, they simply moved farther away from her.
“Why did she become a trainee so late?”
“Dunno. Maybe she failed at something else first? Still, if the CEO’s her uncle, her debut is basically guaranteed. So jealous… Some of us have to fight like hell just to survive…”
Their hushed whispers were clear to Ji Ah-yeong, her sharp ears catching every word.
Even as disappointment made her fingers clutch at her clothes, she forced a bright smile onto her face.
Just then, the waiting room door swung open, and one of the instructors walked in.
“Evaluations are over. Everyone, head back now.”
The trainees bustled about, noisily gathering their things.
Nearly thirty of them flowed out of the room like an outgoing tide, leaving only Ji Ah-yeong behind.
She stood there, gazing blankly at the instructor.
There was something she wanted to ask.
‘The two producers gave me completely opposite advice. What should I do…?
“You, you too. Hurry up and go.”
The instructor, however, didn’t even meet her eyes. He hurried out of the room in a fluster.
“…Yes.”
In the now-empty room, Ji Ah-yeong murmured a soft reply.
Her delicate voice lingered in the air, only to dissipate, unheard and powerless.
“From today onward, I’ll devote myself entirely to supporting you.”
As soon as I parted ways with Kim Yo-han, I stormed into Lilac’s dormitory.
Facing the three women, I declared my decision with resolute determination.
“…Haaaah.”
But the girls, having just returned from their schedule, showed no interest.
They were utterly drained, their faces heavy with exhaustion and sleep.
They stared at me blankly, barely managing a nod.
“Did you come all the way to the dorm just to say that?”
Lee Yeon-ji asked through a massive yawn.
“You told me to come to the dorm instead of the studio.”
“You could’ve waited until tomorrow.”
“The album release isn’t far off.”
Today was January 18th.
The release date was February 5th—barely over two weeks away.
“Ugh, so noisy, so noisy. I’m dying of sleep here.”
Yoo Ah-ra, sprawled on the sofa, kicked her legs against the cushions in protest.
Her ankles, thinner than my wrists, were swollen red with marks left by high heels.
Feeling guilty for some reason, I cleared my throat.
“It won’t take long. Just cooperate for a bit.”
“Ugh, cooperate with ‘what~?’”
“Your album is coming out soon, right? So, I was thinking… Is there anything we can do to generate some buzz at the very last moment?”
Something dramatic—essentially, a stunt to grab attention.
With VBlue starting their promotions next week and Pluto’s album dropping on February 6th, we absolutely had to overshadow them.
In this chaotic battleground, I wanted to do something—anything—to give us even the slightest edge.
But no matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn’t come up with anything that would generate more buzz.
“We’ve already milked the drama appearances, variety shows, and scenic mountains dry. There’s nothing left that could top that.”
Lee Yeon-ji shot me a sharp glare.
Ever since Mountain Scenery had trended on the Ronmel charts, she’d been pestering me nonstop about releasing a solo song.
Morning, noon, and night, I’d get three daily KakaoTalk messages along the lines of: ‘I’d do great with a solo too!’
“Yeah, at this point, we’ve just gotta wait it out.”
Yoo Ah-ra mumbled, her eyes fully shut now.
At some point, Lee Yeon-ji had disappeared into the bathroom, presumably to take off her makeup.
Their uncooperative attitudes annoyed me, but it was too soon to give up.
After all, I still had one person I could count on.
Kim Yoo-jung.
Despite being the youngest, she was calm and mature—someone I could rely on.
When I turned to her with hopeful eyes, she flinched.
“Got any ideas?”
She looked back at me, silent, her fingers fidgeting as if in thought.
“Maybe… if we browse the official fan café, we might find something.”
“The fan cafe?”
“Yes. Things that get talked about a lot there usually turn into trending topics pretty quickly.”
“…The fan cafe.”
It made sense.
Collaborating with fans could be far more effective than going it alone.
Lilac’s powerful fandom, First Love, was known for its loyalty.
The name came from lilacs’ symbolic meaning—first love.
“Where’s the computer?”
“It’s in Ah-ra unnie’s room.”
“….”
I glanced over at Yoo Ah-ra.
She was sprawled across the sofa, sound asleep, drooling onto the cushions.
“Just a quick look inside won’t hurt, right?”
“Yes, Ah-ra unnie’s room doesn’t have much. She borrows most things from us anyway.”
“Ah, thanks.”
Standing in front of the door with Yoo Ah-ra’s nameplate on it, I gave a few light knocks—’tok tok’—then glanced back.
“Yoo-jung-ssi.”
“Yes?”
“Still, I think you should be the one to open it.”
“…Ah, okay.”
She walked briskly over and opened the door for me.
As she had said, the room wasn’t particularly noteworthy.
There wasn’t much except a bed and a computer.
But the setup around the computer… was something else entirely.
A state-of-the-art mechanical keyboard, a high-end mouse, and a long mouse pad adorned with game illustrations.
“What is this?”
“Unnie loves gaming. Just use that computer over there.”
“Oh, okay.”
I carefully powered it on.
The system was so fast that it booted up in just three seconds.
“Wow.”
The desktop was covered with game icons—everything from Luxury Watch and Starship Craft to console games I didn’t even recognize.
Ah, no, this wasn’t the time for that.
I pushed aside the sea of icons and opened the browser, heading straight for Lilac’s official fan café, Lilac Lilac.
With the album release coming up, the café was buzzing with activity.
Posts were being updated rapidly, and every thread had dozens of comments.
[Concert ticketing starts soon~ Let’s all stay strong!]
[Ah-ra’s Adorable Moments Compilation]
[Lately, Yeon-ji is so adorable ㅜㅜ Sorry, Yoo-jung…]
[Yoo-jung’s model-like blank expression]
[Streaming Mountain Scenery 1,000 times – proof]
As I scrolled through the posts full of love and admiration for the members, one particular thread caught my eye:
[Check out the insane quality of this album cover ㄷㄷ.]
The post had 204 comments.
Without much thought, I clicked on it, and the moment the page loaded, an electric spark jolted through my brain.
“…Hey, Yoo-jung-ssi. Wait a second. Didn’t you say the pre-released album cover got a great reaction?”
There was no answer.
Puzzled, I turned to see Kim Yoo-jung sitting on the bed, nodding off.
Lee Yeon-ji, who had just returned from removing her makeup, answered in her place.
“The album cover?”
“Yeah. The reaction’s good, right?”
“Of course! Oh, that reminds me—my mom saw it and was shocked. She even asked if oppa really drew it!”
“Of course, I am. But more importantly, if we handle this right…”
There were 16 days left until the album’s release on February 5th.
If I painted one or two oil paintings per person during that time, we could post them online under a title like, ‘A Typical Idol Fan’s Art.jpg’ and spread them across various community sites.
It could generate just the right amount of buzz.
It’s a plausible idea. Watercolors wouldn’t stand out as much, but oil paintings?
Sure, oil paints and canvases are a bit pricey, but my finances are stable right now.
“Okay!”
I clapped my hands loudly, startling Kim Yoo-jung, who jolted upright.
“I wasn’t asleep!”
“Come on, follow me.”
“I swear I wasn’t! I really wasn’t sleeping!”
Dragging along a confused Kim Yoo-jung, I left the room and headed to the living room, where Yoo Ah-ra was sprawled out on the sofa.
“Hey, wake up.”
“…Mmmff…”
She didn’t stir, so I grabbed her and forced her to sit up.
“Get up already.”
“Ugh, what! Whyyy~!”
“Just stand up for a second.”
“What is it? What is it! What is it even about!”
She flailed her arms in protest, grumbling as I finally got her to sit upright.
Once I managed to calm her huffing and puffing, I went straight to the point.
“Hey, do you guys have a lot of pictures together?”
Yoo Ah-ra glared at me with annoyed eyes, while Lee Yeon-ji and Kim Yoo-jung tilted their heads in confusion.
“Answer me?”
“We do, but why?”
Yoo Ah-ra replied curtly, sounding annoyed.
I grinned and held out my hand.
“Hand them all over.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
Silence.
And then more silence.
The three of them, now fully awake, froze for a moment before their faces twitched.
Then, all at once, they stared at me with the most offended looks I’d ever seen.
As if that weren’t enough, they clutched their chests dramatically and began retreating step by step.
What the hell?
Are they insane?
Why are they reacting like this?
“Hey, that’s not what I meant… Hold on. What kind of pictures have you even been taking?”
Unintentionally, my curiosity spiked.
“W-what are you even saying!”
Yoo Ah-ra, her face now bright red, grabbed a cushion and threw it square at my head.
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