episode_0090

#90

“Huh? CEO~♡ Can I move a little closer?”

“Uh-huh-huh…! O-of course…!”

“Mmm~♡ CEO. Bad hand! Slap!”

“Ehehehe…? Then how about here?”

“Ah~ really…? Just this once, okay? Today’s my first time meeting you, after all. Ser. Vice.♡”

If I listened more carefully, beyond the tightly shut door, the voices of CEO Novia and Luna could be heard clearly.

Eunchae, who had been eavesdropping with me, was flushing redder by the second.

“Th-this… What… What are they doing…?”

“……”

Did I really have to say it?

“Manager. This is… *that*, right? Yeah?”

“Pretty sure. It’s exactly what you’re thinking.”

“Lu-Luna… I never thought she’d…”

Eunchae seemed shocked—likely because this was the first time she’d seen Luna, whom she knew well, acting like this.

Honestly, I was shocked too.

Luna was tall… and had a strong cool-beauty vibe.

But here she was, acting cute.

And… towards a CEO she just met.

“CEO~♡ Why are you so handsome? Hmm?”

“Uhehehe… R-really?”

“Your clothes are stylish too… *sniff* *sniff* Ah~♡ Your cologne smells nice too. Expensive perfume, right?”

“Haha… Luna-ssi, you also smell wonderful…”

“Mmm~. Not ‘Luna-ssi.’ Just Luna! Or you can call me Luna-chan♡”

“Uhehe… Then, Luna-chan?”

“Aww~ CEO~♡”

They’re just playing around.

Eunchae, her face still red, stole a glance at me after listening intently.

“…Is the CEO handsome? I heard he’s young.”

“……….”

I closed my eyes and shook my head.

The other members all let out synchronized sighs.

Far from handsome… Should I say he looks like a total otaku?

To be more precise, he looks like someone who’d use a hypnosis app.

Well, they’ll see for themselves soon enough—no need to spell it out.

“Luna wants~ to get a little closer♪ Is that okay?”

Hypnosis app…

Luna was clinging to the CEO with such over-the-top aegyo it was nauseating, as if she *was* under hypnosis.

“Uhehehe… Your goal isn’t just debuting, right?”

“Debut is nice too~ but what I really want♡ is to deepen our emotional connection, y’know? Don’t you feel like we just *click*?”

“D-d-do I? Ehehehe…”

CEO Novia already seemed completely charmed.

Honestly, if a cool-beauty like Luna clung to him like this, *no* man could resist.

I couldn’t see, but I could practically hear her plastering herself against him, touching him all over—

Then—

*Knock knock knock!*

Harin, who’d been silently listening from behind, suddenly rapped sharply on the door.

“CEO? Mind if we come in?”

She raised her voice.

The sounds inside instantly died down—they must’ve realized we were there.

“…Harin?”

“We can’t wait forever, Manager.”

…Fair enough.

“J-just a sec! Hold on!”

The CEO’s flustered voice came from inside, followed by the sound of hurried shuffling.

*Crash!*

We all exchanged awkward coughs while waiting, fully aware of what was unfolding.

*Creak.*

After a pause, the CEO’s office door swung open.

“…? Harin unnie?”

It was Luna who stepped out.

Scanning our expressions, she let out a bitter smirk.

“Ah~. You heard everything, didn’t you?”

“…Luna. Not *everything*—”

“But enough to guess exactly what I was doing in there, right, Manager?”

She glared at me sharply.

She wasn’t wrong, so I kept quiet.

Luna sighed deeply, stepped into the hallway, and shut the door behind her.

“Lu-Luna…”

Her friend Sarang gave her a worried look. Luna crossed her arms and spat out her words.

“…Yeah. Figured I’d try charming the new CEO since he just took over.”

“……….”

“What’s with those looks? Think I’m some kind of slut now?”

“…Luna, that’s not—”

“Don’t care what you think. I’m beyond caring right now.”

*Hmph!*

She blew a sharp breath through her nose.

“I’ve been a trainee here for *five years*. I thought I’d get *one* chance. But after *SEPIA*, there was COVID, then the company kept delaying everything—no new girl group debuts at all.”

“……….”

“I’m 21 this year. If I debut now, even with six months of prep, I’ll be 22. You *know* what they call 22-year-old rookies. Right?”

I did.

Even *SEPIA*, seniors struggling to stay relevant against younger groups, would face ruthless comparisons. A girl group debuting at that age? The backlash would be brutal.

The *SEPIA* members, understanding Luna’s bitterness better than anyone, stayed silent.

“…If I don’t debut this time, it’s *over* for me. I dropped out of high school for this—five years of killing myself in practice. I *can’t* quit now. No agency would take a rejected trainee my age… I just… *can’t*!”

Luna trembled violently.

She must’ve hated acting like that with him.

But she didn’t have a choice—not with what was at stake.

“…So *SEPIA*, don’t even think about getting in my way. This time, I *will* debut. And I’ll surpass all of you.”

She shot the group a venomous glare.

Harin listened silently, then stepped forward.

“…Luna. Why would you say—”

“Unnie, *you* got your chance. Squandering it was *your* fault, wasn’t it?”

“—!”

Harin’s eyes widened in shock.

“I never even got *one* shot—just wasted five years in limbo. While *SEPIA* debuted then flopped around, I rotted in the basement practice room. *Understand?*”

“…Luna.”

“I’m leaving this place. I’ll do *anything* to make that happen—become the CEO’s fling, endure insults—I don’t care. Unlike you, I *won’t* blow my chance.”

Her words dripped with pent-up resentment as she turned to leave—stopping briefly when she spotted Se-ah blocking her path.

“Se-ah. Move.”

“…Okay.”

Se-ah, shrinking back, scurried aside.

“…Luna! *Luna!*”

She ignored my calls, vanishing down the hallway.

“…*Sigh*.”

I checked the members’ expressions.

Instead of anger, they looked like they’d been sucker-punched—especially Harin.

“…!!”

She was shaking violently.

Luna’s words must’ve struck a nerve.

Resting a hand on her trembling shoulder, I addressed the group.

“…Don’t take Luna’s words to heart. She’s ashamed and desperate—that’s all. I’ll get her to apologize later.”

“…Yeah.”

“Let’s go in.”

*Knock knock knock.*

“C-come in!”

The CEO’s voice answered.

I opened the door, leading the girls inside.

CEO Novia, poorly pretending to shuffle documents, acted like nothing had happened. We bowed.

“…CEO, I’m Jeon Hogu, *SEPIA*’s manager. These are the members.”

“R-right.”

They lined up beside me.

“Two, three! The brightest stars under the sky—*SEPIA*!”

They chanted their greeting in unison, then individually introduced themselves.

Despite their nerves, they studied the CEO intently.

Eunchae muttered quietly, just for me:

“…*Definitely* hypnosis-app material. How’s Luna into this?”

Told you.

“H-haha… Hello. I’m Novia, your new CEO. Nice to meet you.”

The girls mirrored his awkward greeting with practiced idol smiles, clapping politely.

Idols—even faced with *this* guy, they could fake sincerity flawlessly.

But then—

“…Honestly, though.”

The CEO’s smile vanished, replaced by a chilling stare.

The room instantly froze over.

“You’ve all spoken with the Manager, yes?”

“…Yes!”

Harin answered confidently as leader.

“The financial split, the company’s situation… My proposals?”

“…We heard everything.”

“Then you’re here with your decision?”

“…Yes.”

Harin gulped.

“CEO. *SEPIA* wants…”

She gripped my wrist again.

“…to continue activities.”

“No.”

…Huh?

Harin, disbelieving, repeated:

“…CEO?”

“I said *no*. *SEPIA*’s done.”

He swiveled his monitor, showing the girls the same screen he’d shown me earlier—the *Novia Girls* logo, with seven trainees’ photos beneath it.

…Including Luna’s.

“Our company’s focus is *only* on the new group now.”