Chapter 170

Chapter 170

Raise Three Idols Well And They’ll Launch a Confession Attack.

Episode 170: Mental Care

‘I love you.’

As a member of TwoBear, I wanted to be a trustworthy employee to my colleagues.

As the manager of Girl Revolution, I wanted to be a capable team leader.

And I wanted to be an adult that Gaeul could rely on.

‘Now and forever.’

But I failed in fulfilling all of those things at once.

It was because I was lacking.

It was because I was foolish.

I had promised not to make the same mistake, yet the only reason I repeated it was that.

“…”

My hands, which had been moving over the keyboard to write the documents, stopped.

‘Then, why is that valuable? I really don’t understand.’

I felt nauseous.

My head hurt.

The bumps on my tongue felt strangely irritating.

My breathing felt like it was broken down into small pieces, each breath painfully moving in its own way.

The ticking of the clock, the sound of the humidifier’s engine, the noise of the computer fan—everything felt annoyingly loud and overwhelming.

My head hurt.

“Team Leader Seon.”

“…”

“Team Leader Seon!”

I realized too late that someone had come beside me.

“…Yoori?”

It was Oh Yoori.

“What time is it? Why aren’t you back in the dorm?”

“Then, what are you doing, Team Leader Seon?”

“I was working. I wish I could handle everything within work hours, but it’s not that easy.”

“You’ve been staring blankly at the screen for the past 10 minutes. Is that work?”

…Why is she picking a fight all of a sudden?

“Alright, I messed up. I’ll focus now and work hard. So, you should go. It’s dangerous if it gets too late.”

“Work? No, I didn’t come here to make you work. Honestly, I don’t care whether you work or not, Team Leader Seon.”

“Then, why did you come here?”

Then, Oh Yoori handed me a can from the front pocket of the pink training jacket I had gifted her.

“Take it.”

I took the can and checked what it was.

“…”

It was beer.

“Where did you get this from? Did you secretly buy this?”

“I borrowed it from Composer Oh Jinwoo’s mini-fridge.”

“…”

…I told you to hide it in front of the kids, Oh Jinwoo, you plagiarism idiot.

Then, Oh Yoori took out another can from her left pocket and opened it with a crisp sound.

Hiss!

“Hey, why are you opening that?”

“To drink.”

“Are you crazy?! You’re a middle schooler. Do you know what will happen if you get caught?”

“Don’t worry. This is nonalcoholic.”

I snatched the can she was holding and checked it.

It was really nonalcoholic beer.

“No, that’s not the problem. Well… if it’s nonalcoholic, I guess it’s fine. We’re inside the company, so no one’s going to make it a public issue. Yeah, just don’t expect much; it doesn’t taste great, so drink it in moderation.”

Then, Oh Yoori took a chair from Seok Hyun-woo’s desk and sat next to me.

“Let’s drink together.”

“…”

Why is she acting like this?

“You and me?”

“Yes.”

“Do I need to explain that I’m already being too lenient with you? And now you want me to drink with a middle schooler at work?”

“It’s nonalcoholic.”

“Sigh, Yoori.”

I let out a deep sigh and spoke.

“I thought you were mature, professional, and responsible… But now, I think I might be wrong. Please just go in. I’m going to work.”

“Come on, just hang out with me for once. Like I said, I’ve been doing fine without messing up! Where else do you find a middle schooler like me? The girl who used to go to Flower with me, Dasom, got pregnant, and I’m not that bad. Am I?”

…What is she talking about?

“Pregnant?”

“Yeah, she got pregnant with another trainee from the same agency.”

“How old is she? What about her debut?”

“She has 2 months until her debut, and she’s the same age as me.”

“Is she crazy?”

In my mind, I imagined Oh Yoori suddenly confessing she was pregnant two months before her new album release.

…There’s no answer to this.

“I just want to hang out for a bit. I’ll live more modestly and properly from now on, so please just let me hang out with you once.”

“…”

I looked at the ceiling, took a deep breath, and then opened the beer can that Oh Yoori handed me.

Hiss!

“Cheers.”

“Cheers.”

We clinked our cans together and took a sip of the beer. Hers was nonalcoholic, but it was still beer.

While drinking, I entered into a moment of contemplation, asking myself, “Why do I have to be in this situation?” Meanwhile, Oh Yoori kept talking.

“So, when I asked Trainer Song Johan what that word meant, do you know what he said?”

“What did he say?”

“He said he didn’t know.”

“So, he uses those frantic English words without even knowing their meaning?”

“Yeah, heheheh.”

We talked about personal things, recent updates, tough times, and amusing episodes, and after a while, Oh Yoori finished her nonalcoholic beer in one go and said,

“Team Leader Seon.”

“Oh, why?”

“I think you’re really not attractive, Team Leader Seon.”

“…”

“Your personality is like a total pushover; it’s frustrating just watching you. You’re so obsessed with work, you have no personal life. Your face isn’t bad, I’ll admit that, but you have a somewhat overly decadent vibe, which isn’t really my taste.”

“Did you come here to pick a fight with me?”

What did I do wrong for this?

“Anyway, I will never see you as a man. I like rational and logical people.”

“Alright, go find someone like that. Stay away from someone like me.”

“That’s what I was saying; what I wanted to talk about was…”

Oh Yoori said lightly, as if there was nothing significant behind her words.

“Just think of me as a friend; it’s fine.”

“…”

“Just a light friend, someone you can chat with over a nonalcoholic beer. A friend who you don’t see as a romantic interest.”

“…”

I took her light words to heart, thought it over, and then responded.

“Talking about being friends? There’s an 11-year age gap between you and me. What kind of friendship is that? Just to be clear, if you start talking casually, it won’t fly.”

The choice was a scolding that was basically the epitome of being an old-fashioned person.

Despite that, Oh Yoori smiled faintly and said,

“You’re looking a little better now.”

“What?”

“Don’t just work, meet people, have some small talk, and live like that. It’s true that you’re not very attractive, but at least you should keep the bright side of the few charms you have.”

“Why are you constantly rating people like that?”

“Are you worried I might see you as a man?”

“I’ll never think that, so don’t worry.”

After chatting, Oh Yoori waited for me to finish my beer, and when I was done, she put her empty can down and stood up.

“Well, I’ve had my fill of rebellion, so I’ll go back to being good girl Yoori. I’ll go back to being a delinquent when you least expect it.”

“Don’t. Stay in the good girl version.”

Oh Yoori chuckled and said, looking at me,

“Hehe, well, I’ll see what Team Leader Seon does.”

With that last comment, she left the office.

“What the hell did she want?”

I checked the time, sighed, threw the empty beer can into the trash, and resumed working.

Strangely, my head no longer hurt.

I organized today’s schedule in front of Seok Hyun-woo and the newly hired road managers.

“Then, Yoonho, take Gyeoul to the ‘Star Challenge’ filming site.”

“Yes, understood.”

“Seomin, you go to the audition site where Yoori is participating.”

“Got it! I’ll remember the audition site!”

“Seok Hyun-woo, you…”

I dragged out the end of my sentence, continuing to think.

Finally, I made my decision.

“Please go to ‘Seo Yongdeok’s Music Time’ filming site with Gaeul.”

Seok Hyun-woo, in response to my order, hesitated and glanced at me.

“That… wouldn’t it be better if you went, Team Leader Seon? The reaction would be better if you participate as a session artist.”

“The cast is Gaeul. But if I keep inserting myself, it’ll actually look bad. There have even been posts asking why the manager is so involved, so I need to be more careful.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, that’s correct. So this is how today’s schedule will go. Any other opinions?”

“No!”

“None from me either.”

“Of course, we’ll follow Team Leader Seon’s decision.”

After sorting everything out, I returned to my office and began organizing the tasks I had briefly completed yesterday.

In the midst of that, my work phone rang.

It was a message from Cheon Aram, saying she needed to talk and wanted me to come upstairs.

…Here it comes.

I swallowed slightly, organized the reports to show her, and then headed to the President’s office.

“This is Seon Taeyang.”

“Come in.”

I opened the door, followed her lead, and sat down in the chair.

Cheon Aram looked at me with a small smile.

…It’s impossible to hide anything from our perceptive President.

And as an employee, I shouldn’t be hiding anything.

I opened my mouth.

“I’m sorry. Regarding Gaeul–”

“Team Leader Seon.”

Cheon Aram cut me off and looked at me with an odd expression.

“When I call you Team Leader, it means that I’m entrusting all authority in management to you. So, you don’t need to act like a guilty person in front of me.”

“But…”

“I believe you’ll handle things wisely. If there’s something that’s difficult for you, just let me know. I’ll help you actively.”

I had been preparing to speak, tense and on edge, but I looked at her with a slightly defeated expression.

And then, just like usual, a natural smile appeared on my face.

“I’ll do my best. I’ll make sure to live up to your expectations.”

“Alright, that’s enough of that. The reason I called you here is for something else.”

And Cheon Aram handed me a document.

[Invitation Request – Jin Yeoreum]

“What is this?”

Cheon Aram scratched her head and added,

“They want to use Yeoreum.”

“Where?”

“For the main slot of a broadcast program.”

“…”

…Is this person crazy?