Chapter 58
These damned things.
Kim Ryeo-yu gritted her teeth in frustration.
How dare they talk behind her back like that?
“I feel so wronged…! Why would the kids who left our company have good feelings towards me…! They must be jealous because they can’t make it to the debut group, right, CEO?”
“Speak sensibly. There are kids who are doing much better than you right now.”
CEO Hong immediately cut off Kim Ryeo-yu’s words.
Kim Ryeo-yu was furious, but she bowed her head for now.
If she could just find out who it was, she was thinking of half-killing them.
“The complaints about you and Director Kim are getting louder within the company.”
CEO Hong tapped her desk with a pen.
“Trainee Jo Hee-on said she would like to cover up this incident and move on, so I’ll let this one go. But.”
CEO Hong let out a deep sigh.
There were many uncomfortable aspects to this incident.
She knew that Director Kim was trying to push Kim Ryeo-yu into the debut group no matter what.
CEO Hong didn’t think much of it either.
Kim Ryeo-yu was not an unpopular trainee, but a trainee competing for the top ranks.
But she had stopped Director Kim from pushing her too obviously.
By not allowing her to receive special treatment in the mission, or by dividing the parts as evenly as possible among all the trainees.
She thought that if she made the competition fair, the problem would be solved.
She thought the problem was Director Kim, not Kim Ryeo-yu.
But a new variable had emerged.
Now, the public opinion about Kim Ryeo-yu was not so good either.
‘Did the trainees produce this time? How is it?’
CEO Hong asked Dan Ha and Han Jae-i directly.
She thought they would speak from a relatively objective perspective.
Neither of them were people who couldn’t speak because they were afraid of Director Kim.
‘Ha ha. How should I tell you this-‘
‘It’s not good.’
‘Hey, hey. Be gentle….’
Han Jae-i, who was hesitating, and Dan Ha, who was firm.
‘The trainee is not that mature in personality. Those kids don’t last long and cause accidents.’
Dan Ha spoke very definitively.
CEO Hong gave Han Jae-i a look. It meant, is that really true?
‘…Well, she’s not a trainee I’d like to be on the same team with.’
If even that kind Han Jae-i says that….
CEO Hong sighed.
While it was still uncertain outside the company, it was a foregone conclusion inside the company.
But since there was no decisive incident, she had been watching for now….
Then this incident happened.
“This is something to remember.”
Now, CEO Hong’s patience was slowly running out.
No company would want to put out a product with defects in the first place.
So far, she had given her a chance as a senior, as an adult.
But if she betrays the expectations of person to person-
“Ultimately, I am the final decision maker.”
She had no choice but to treat the other party as a product, not a person.
“You must think that I have to debut you in the end, Trainee Ryeo-yu? You are currently in the upper ranks in the vote, and you have a high profile. You seem to have some fans?”
Kim Ryeo-yu couldn’t answer.
Because she thought exactly that.
“But if the company doesn’t invest in you, your popularity won’t last a year.”
“…!”
“If it weren’t for the program called ‘Make a New Color’, your popularity wouldn’t have existed in the first place.”
Kim Ryeo-yu’s lips began to tremble more and more.
Whether or not, CEO Hong spoke coldly.
“If I exclude you from the program right now, it will probably be a bit noisy for a few months. Some fans will send trucks to the company, and they will definitely issue a statement. On SNS, they will rebel and curse me for a few days.”
Wouldn’t a large agency like Colors have experienced such a thing?
CEO Hong continued to explain slowly.
Will the stock price drop a bit? For a few days? No. Thinking about it, you don’t seem to be that level. I heard that the ranking is on a downward trend these days.
“Do you see me as someone who will debut you because I’m afraid of being cursed for a few days?”
CEO Hong was a person who had experienced everything from the artist’s point of view, and from the CEO’s point of view.
It meant that she had experienced all kinds of things.
Something worse than this?
There were plenty.
This kind of thing wouldn’t even be recorded in CEO Hong’s history.
“How long do you think that will last? If you look at Director Kim, if it was a health problem, it wouldn’t last two weeks. If you decide to bury yourself completely, gather some trainee testimonies and expose your personality to the public, the reactions will disappear in two days. It’s a matter of moments to plaster you with curses.”
“CEO…!”
Kim Ryeo-yu was truly scared for the first time.
The calm tone of CEO Hong felt more realistic.
“Do you really think there isn’t a single trainee who would testify among the trainees now? Are you really confident? If so, try it.”
“…!”
There must be.
Kim Ryeo-yu immediately thought of Yoon Cheong.
That venomous kid wouldn’t keep her mouth shut.
In the end, Kim Ryeo-yu-
“…I’m sorry. I did…wrong. If you give me one more…chance, I won’t disappoint you this time.”
She bowed her head.
***
“Ryeo-yu unnie…. What’s wrong? Is it time to die…?”
Yeon Juhong came up to me and whispered in my ear.
It was understandable, because Kim Ryeo-yu was really strange today.
Throughout the part distribution, she didn’t rebel even once.
Even if the five of us divided it exactly into fifths, there was no word.
I thought she would throw a fit and say she would do it when we decided on the main vocal.
She accepted it without a word.
Did she go somewhere yesterday and get scolded?
Why is she so down?
No, was there anyone who could scold her in the first place?
To that extent, wouldn’t CEO Hong have to come?
“How about practicing each part for about 2 hours and then matching it?”
“Sure~”
“Yes, yes!”
Despite my suggestion, Kim Ryeo-yu just nodded her head without saying a word.
It’s really hard to adapt when she suddenly acts like this.
Let’s ignore it.
No, but don’t let your guard down.
I focused on my individual practice.
The more this happens, the stronger my skills need to be.
I have to perform the song I chose, including the accompaniment.
Although the part distribution was almost similar, my responsibility was the heaviest.
I continued to practice while playing the guitar.
It was a bit difficult to play the guitar and sing at the same time after a long time.
Even though I’m relatively proficient, it was a nerve-wracking task.
I felt this way even more because of the compulsion to do it perfectly without a single mistake.
This feeling intensified because only the final mission remained after this stage.
It’s peaceful for the first time in a while, so I can focus on practice-
“That’s not it.”
“…How about you just focus on your practice?”
I can’t do it.
I turned my head towards the noisy side.
Kim Geum and Ryu Bo-ra were arguing and fighting.
It’s nice to say they’re arguing, but they’re on the verge of raising their voices.
If there were no cameras, they would have fought long ago.
Why is she suddenly like that over there?
“The sound here should feel slightly connected. Not a disconnected feeling.”
“Geum-ah.”
“Huh?”
“Can I try it alone?”
“Let’s do it together! Don’t always do it alone.”
“…I want to do it alone.”
Looking at the situation, Kim Geum seemed to want to help Ryu Bo-ra continuously.
Ryu Bo-ra didn’t like that.
Kim Geum is not that meddlesome.
I knew why Kim Geum was doing that.
‘It’s my first time seeing Ryu Bo-ra work so hard.’
‘…Really?’
‘She always did as others told her without any motivation. I think she really wants to do this job now, so I’m proud and happy. She has to keep this momentum going.’
‘That’s good.’
‘Right?! I really have to push her.’
‘…Hmm.’
Even though I thought Ryu Bo-ra must be really good, it was awkward.
I know that Kim Geum wants to debut with Ryu Bo-ra….
It’s not good to interfere with someone else’s practice.
“Geum-ah, come here.”
“Yes?”
“Let Bo-ra do it alone. Instead, you help me.”
“I don’t want to. It’s not fun to help someone as perfect as you.”
“….”
What should I really respond to this?
“Kim Geum. So you’re saying I’m not perfect?”
Ryu Bo-ra also seemed quite upset.
“You become perfect because I’m here.”
“What the hell are you talking about….”
Both of them are hopeless.
I decided to ignore the two of them.
It seems to have been resolved well for now.
Then,
Ding!
[※Notification※]
…?
Why is this in my pocket?
I didn’t bring my phone today.
[Go out to the hallway right now!]
[TIP. I have to take care of my members!]
My member… I don’t have one yet.
Ding!
[TIP. An idol group is a single body! My member’s mistake is my responsibility!]
Somehow, due to the continuous ominous messages, I ended up going outside.
Let’s go get some water or something, whatever.
“Huh?!”
As soon as I heard Yeon Juhong’s voice, I realized.
The real storm was raging where it couldn’t be seen.
“Uh… change the part? Which part?”
When I cautiously went to where the sound was coming from, Kim Ryeo-yu and Yeon Juhong were having a conversation.
It feels weird.
For now, I didn’t approach the two of them and just watched the situation.
Asking to change the part is a request that can be easily fulfilled.
“Uh… Is that so? But then….”
Yeon Juhong asked in a very puzzled voice.