Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols - Chapter 33
Only Krnovel
| Episode 33. Chuno (3)
Lee Cheong-hyeon got up from his seat, startled.
‘How did you find me?’
Lee Cheong-hyeon thought that if he didn’t get home on time, they might come looking for him. Just a thought.
But I never expected that they would come to catch me. How could I find someone in the middle of Seoul without even calling them?
What was even more frightening was Kim Yi-wol’s indifferent reaction when he discovered him.
‘You were here after all?’
That meant that it wasn’t a coincidence that Kim I-wol had found Lee Cheong-hyeon. That made it even more terrifying.
I had a strong urge to lighten the mood by asking, “Hyung, have you ever worked at a detective agency before you became a trainee?”
But he couldn’t do that. Kim Yi-wol’s expression as he looked at himself was literally sinister.
The colleague who came to see me had a different aura from the moment I first saw him.
I don’t know whether to call it dreary or cold.
Or, when you see a face with a cold air flowing down it, like a combination of the two, you think, ‘Ah, this guy is no ordinary guy.’
When Kim Yi-wol stood still with a blank expression, he was so intimidating that no one, except Choi Je-ho, could easily talk to him.
The only thing that made Kim Yi-wol less approachable was his strange personality, which was different from his appearance, but it was not easy to face Kim Yi-wol one-on-one.
I respected my friend Kang Ki-yeon for practicing independently with this hyung every day.
To Lee Cheong-hyeon, it was almost terrifying to face Kim Yi-wol, who had come all the way here by bus for an hour just because of him.
He ran away from the company that had given him a spot in the debut group without saying a word.
When he returns, he will face a situation where his shabby first creation is discussed as his debut work.
To Lee Cheong-hyeon, everything felt too heavy. It felt like a never-ending test.
So Lee Cheong-hyeon chose to run away.
If you think about it rationally, you wonder why you thought so extremely about the terrifying idea that you would die if you were caught.
“Lee Cheong-hyeon!”
He heard a voice calling his name from behind him.
Lee Cheong-hyeon shouted inwardly, ‘I’m sorry, hyung!’
It was an action that was unusual for him and showed no consideration for the consequences.
Kim Yi-wol, who had the best stamina among the trainees, forgot that catching him was not an easy task.
Lee Cheong-hyeon, who had been running up the mountain trail without any plan, had his arm grabbed at a spring halfway up the mountain after 20 minutes.
The grip on his arm was so strong that Lee Cheong-hyeon barely managed to hold back the ‘ugh’ sound that escaped his lips.
“Cheong-hyeon-ah.”
At the same time, Kim Yi-wol’s voice was heard from a much closer distance than before.
If a moment ago there had been a sense of urgency, the voice now calling out his name was filled with anger, only anger.
Lee Cheong-hyeon was about to think, ‘I’m out of breath all the way to my chin, but what if that guy doesn’t feel any pain?’
Kim Yi-wol asked, putting more strength into the hand he was holding Lee Cheong-hyeon’s arm, wondering if the evil force from earlier wasn’t at its peak.
“Idols are a joke?”
The words that came out of Kim Iwol’s mouth were something that Lee Cheong-hyeon had not expected at all.
* * *
‘Why does this kid have such an expression on his face?’
I thought as I looked at the face of Lee Cheong-hyeon, whom I had finally succeeded in capturing in front of my eyes.
The rest were serious, but the guy had an expression on his face like he didn’t know what was going on.
‘Don’t you know how dangerous this situation could have been?’
That’s why I have such a blank expression on my face.
My chest feels stuffy. I think I need to start taking my stomach protectors again.
I calmly asked Lee Cheong-hyeon to think of 30 landscapes that come to mind when you need peace of mind and body.
“Why are you running around in the mountains when you get a scar on your face that’s like a gold nugget? Aren’t you in your right mind? Don’t you think about your fans who will cry and laugh and be full without eating just because of a single high-definition photo of you?”
With a face like that, Lee Cheong-hyeon needed to be aware of the power of his face.
I’m not a lookist, but the world isn’t like that.
‘There were so many comments saying that even if Spark caused an accident, they would endure it because they saw Lee Cheong-hyun’s face.’
Not everyone in the world tolerated the controversy sparked by Lee Cheong-hyeon’s face.
But at least in terms of holding back the fans’ ankles at least once, preserving Lee Cheong-hyeon’s face had to be seen as something for the team.
I had to take three deep breaths to keep myself from bursting into rage. My head was pounding.
There are people who are just racking their brains from morning till night, trying to make a successful debut.
It’s been a long time since I felt so uncooperative around me, since when Manager Nam suddenly moved my seat to the front of the bathroom.
So I tried to remind myself that Lee Cheong-hyeon in front of me was still a minor and could easily be upset in the eye of the typhoon.
Then the boiling anger subsided somewhat.
“You’re not mad that I ran away… … right?”
“Why are you mad that he ran away when you already caught him?”
For me, who has survived in Hanpyeong Industry for several years, this is not even something that could be considered a hit and run.
“It’s not like I’m not angry. It’s just that I got my food taken away from me?”
“Thank goodness it’s not spicy noodles but rice… … .”
“The part that really pissed me off was that you were running around the mountain without any safety equipment. If you had just followed along, we could have sat down at a level negotiating table.”
Just as he was about to regret his excitement and unnecessary long-winded speech, Lee Cheong-hyeon muttered.
“sorry.”
It was a really dead apple.
It hasn’t been that long since I saw him up close, but he didn’t seem like the type of person who would do something like this. He seemed to be really cornered mentally.
‘It would be better to talk rationally…’
After finding out about the situation of Jeong Seong-bin, who was already being pressured by a healthy adult, I was not happy about the fact that I was being pushy towards him.
No matter how well-intentioned one may be, it is difficult for a young person in Korean society to not be conscious of the age difference.
In the end, I held back and decided to lighten the mood first.
“No. I knew you wanted to be alone, so I’m sorry for coming to find you unilaterally. But I came because I was worried about you, so I hope you don’t feel too embarrassed.”
Lee Cheong-hyeon smiled awkwardly at my words.
It wasn’t that he was really trying not to feel embarrassed, but it seemed like he was trying hard to act like nothing happened because he didn’t like the atmosphere of being scolded.
“I was just going to stay for 30 more minutes and then leave. Now that I’ve been caught, there’s nothing I can do. What a pity!”
Then Lee Cheong-hyeon got up from the bench and shook out his pants.
“Then let’s fill up 30 minutes and go.”
“yes?”
“Just practice more on your own and then go. Since you’re going to be late anyway, just skip out on what you planned and go.”
I checked to see if there was anyone around me who needed to give up their seat, then sat down next to where Lee Cheong-hyeon had been sitting.
Lee Cheong-hyeon also glanced at me and sat back down in his seat in a dazed manner.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“If you get caught practicing, of course you have to be careful.”
“If you’re going to be so careful, why are you practicing? You’re an additional offense.”
When I looked at Lee Cheong-hyeon, Lee Cheong-hyeon swallowed.
I asked, keeping my gaze focused somewhere in the city center that stretched halfway down the mountainside.
“You’re worried after writing such a good song?”
Then Lee Cheong-hyeon asked back.
“How did you know?”
I didn’t bother answering this.
I didn’t feel the need to go into detail about the process I went through to arrive at my conclusion, nor did I think it would be an important story for Lee Cheong-hyeon.
Instead, I decided to move on to the part that Lee Cheong-hyeon seemed to be most concerned about.
“I understand that you are worried about what to do if your grades don’t come out, but that’s not your problem to worry about.”
“yes?”
“There are differences between the music market and the album market, group recognition is important, and it also varies depending on promotions and exposure on music shows… … There are dozens of factors that affect performance, so the responsibility can’t just fall on the composer.”
This was something that Lee Cheong-hyeon would agree with in his head. His heart was a different matter, though.
This is because it has been proven through numerous cases that no matter how great the concept is with excellent members, if the song is not attractive, it will not be able to appeal.
Even Lee Cheong-hyeon himself was a boy who never missed out on music or studying when he was young.
Among those who have done well in everything, there are quite a few who feel pressure to achieve results.
I’m afraid of failing because I’ve never failed before.
Although they are usually very excited, at some point they start to be very concerned about what other people think, and while they are not shy about showing off what they are already recognized for, they are overly timid when it comes to challenging themselves in their own fields.
Just by looking at that appearance, you can easily understand Lee Cheong-hyeon’s personality.
“Of course I’m worried. But even if the results aren’t good, I won’t blame anyone else for it. I can’t tolerate someone being single.”
Even as I spoke, I found myself frowning because I was so embarrassed.
However, I quickly furrowed my brows, thinking that even if my wrinkles increased, it would only increase the amount of money that would be deducted from the settlement along with the reservation for the aesthetic shop.
“It’s difficult. Until recently, all I had to do was ask my brother how far I had progressed.”
“Well, if you’re really worried, you could hold persistent feedback meetings like when you check progress.”
“Wow. I just imagined it and it feels like my energy is already being sucked in… … .”
Lee Cheong-hyeon swept both arms down.
‘I’ve felt this way since last time, but you seem to be very weak to negative evaluations.’
Until I went to the A&R team with my work, I thought Lee Cheong-hyeon had no aversion to such things.
But I guess from the creator’s perspective, he couldn’t just ignore the evaluation.
There is no one who only receives favorable reviews in life.
Naturally, humans grow up while being criticized or pointed out at least once.
However, this ‘criticism’ seemed to have had a significant impact on Lee Cheong-hyeon.
If others knew, they might literally say, “Are you afraid of maggots so you can’t make kimchi?” But what people consider important varies greatly from person to person.
Just as there are people who hate maggots so much that they shudder, bad reviews may be the same for Lee Cheong-hyeon.
To that extent, it wasn’t an emotion that was completely incomprehensible.
“Nana and the kids aren’t experts to begin with. At best, we can just talk about our impressions.”
“Yeah… … It’s long. Hmm.”
An indescribable expression flashed across Lee Cheong-hyeon’s face. However, Lee Cheong-hyeon quickly hid the expression.
I said, still keeping my gaze on the top of the tallest building beneath my feet.
“What’s there to be ashamed of? You always do well.”