Chapter 1113: Lemon Boys... Jump with all your might! (5)

After filming wrapped up amid cheerful laughter, I headed straight over to X Buster.

"Fullip."

"Yes, Sunbae."

"Are you okay? It feels like I might've hurt your feelings..."

"I'm fine, Sunbae. Something like this would never hurt me. I have an exceptionally strong mentality."

He's extremely hurt.

Scratching the back of my head, I looked at the rookie idol answering with lifeless eyes.

His sharp, intimidating features hid it well, but there was an unmistakable air of dejection about him.

I leaned toward Hanjo beside me and whispered,

"Does he not get along with LB?"

"It's not really that... You probably wouldn't get it since you're an only child. Hmm... What's a similar example? Imagine someone told you that you looked like Jiho."

"I'd like that."

"You look like Ri Hyuk."

"...!!"

I froze in shock.

Hanjo nodded.

Exactly.

I've made a terrible mistake.

"...?"

Nearby, Ri Hyuk, who had been talking to the Lemon Boys, narrowed his eyes at me.

He must have sensed we'd been talking about him, though he hadn't heard exactly what was said.

I quietly turned back.

They really do look alike.

They were unmistakably brothers.

Both had the kind of rough, delinquent-looking faces that made you instinctively think, That kid probably isn't a good influence.

But then you got to know LB and realized—

He's actually hilarious.

Always grinning like a mischievous kid, always the loudest member of Street Boys.

The younger brother standing in front of me, however, felt like his complete opposite.

"I don't think there's anything we can do about genetics. We're brothers, after all."

That expression...

He's absolutely devastated...!

Fullip nodded solemnly.

"So I believe your observation was perfectly reasonable, Sunbae."

"Please stop... I'm really sorry."

"No, really. I'm very happy."

His smile looked painfully forced.

All I could do was watch him trudge back toward his teammates with wounded pride and stare off into the distance.

Hanjo rested a hand on my shoulder.

"And so today, you've wounded yet another innocent heart."

"I genuinely meant it as a compliment."

I poked him in the side as he smirked, then returned to the Lemon Boys.

Biju, Junghyun, and Jiho had already surrounded the trainees, bouncing up and down.

"Way to go, Lemon Boys!"

"So strong, Lemon!"

"So refreshingly sour, Lemon!"

As soon as I approached, Biju frantically waved me over.

We all joined hands, spun around in a circle, and shouted our praises together.

"You guys were incredible."

"Really?!"

Jinho's eyes sparkled.

I gave him a thumbs-up.

"My favorite little practice addicts."

"Hehe! We worked pretty hard~!"

"Jinho, you anchored the vocals perfectly as the main vocalist. Yoonsoo was excellent too. Boksoo really cleaned up the dance lines, so the choreography was easy to watch. Gyumin and Saebyeok have both improved a lot. And Eunhyun—I could really hear how much your rapping has improved."

"Thank you!"

Then my gaze shifted toward the one standing among the golden retrievers like a lone Jindo dog.

"Ji Hyuk, you worked really hard. It couldn't have been easy taking charge of the team."

"It wasn't too bad. Everyone helped a lot."

"Good. Keep taking care of them."

As the other Lemon Boys crowded around chanting, "Leader! Leader!", Biju smiled at me.

"Doesn't this remind you of the old days, Hyung?"

"It really does."

Five years ago.

I suddenly remembered our year-end evaluation, when the members had chosen me as leader.

Jiho stretched lazily and sighed.

"Ah... youth. They're such babies."

"Pfft."

The rest of us laughed and ruffled the youngest's hair.

"Listen to you pretending you're an adult."

"You're not an adult either."

"Come on! Make up your minds! One day you tell me I'm not a kid anymore, the next day you tell me I'm not an adult!"

We indulged the grumbling maknae for a bit before I called the Lemon Boys over.

The seven of them looked at me like a line of baby chicks.

"Hungry?"

"Yes!"

I took my wallet out and held up a card.

Jinho immediately clapped a hand over his mouth.

"No way... the Sun Card!"

"The Sun Card!"

Did they mean the Sun Wooju Card?

Pretending I understood exactly what they meant, I smiled and handed it to Ji Hyuk.

He accepted it with a crisp bow.

"Thank you!"

"You all worked hard. Go grill yourselves some meat."

"WOOOOOOO!!"

The trainees all bowed ninety degrees before running off, squealing with excitement.

Watching the little flock scamper away, Junghyun leaned toward me.

"Hyung."

"Go."

"I'm off."

Junghyun hurried after them so he could grill their meat, while Jiho tagged along simply because he wanted barbecue himself.

As we watched our trainees leave...

I noticed X Buster watching them from a distance with unmistakably envious expressions.

"Do you guys want to go eat barbecue too?"

"If we get the chance, we'd absolutely love to...!"

Hongju clenched his fists before lowering his head.

"But unfortunately, we have to go back to practice, Sunbae."

"Ah, really?"

"Yes. Our debut showcase is at the end of this month, so we need to get back to rehearsals immediately."

It really was the busiest time for them.

I nodded sympathetically before giving them my phone number.

"If you ever need anything, call this number."

"...!"

They accepted it with expressions of genuine gratitude.

Smiling, I continued,

"We're all part of the same company now. That's why today's trainee battle happened in the first place. So if you ever need advice, or anything at all, don't hesitate to contact me."

Everyone looked touched.

Just then Hanjo casually slung an arm over my shoulder.

"But nobody knows when he'll actually reply~ If he's busy, he'll leave you on read for three days."

"The important thing is that I do reply eventually."

Everyone chuckled.

Then Fullip suddenly burst out laughing.

"Hahaha!"

"...?"

Everyone turned to him.

Fullip tilted his head.

"...Wasn't that a joke? The part about replying after three days..."

"Nope," Hanjo answered. "Sun Wooju's replies really are that slow."

"I see..."

Chuckling as Fullip quietly walked away, I looked over at the debut team.

The reason I'd come as a judge today was because they were juniors from my company.

They weren't direct juniors like Lemon Boys.

But since I now owned part of the company, I felt responsible for looking after them.

In a different sense...

They were Lemon Boys too.

"You said you have to go practice, right?"

"Yes."

"Then why don't you practice here today?"

"...!"

I remembered the way they'd been looking around our practice room with envy all afternoon.

Seeing their stunned expressions, I smiled and gestured around us.

"Practice here today. This place belongs to your company now too."

"Thank you!"

Bright smiles spread across every member of X Buster.

After Lemon Boys finished eating...

While the two Street Boys members and our younger guys were hanging out together, I called Ji Hyuk into my studio.

"So, how was today?"

The neat-looking high schooler answered honestly.

"Honestly... I was even more nervous than I was during the survival show."

"Oh?"

"Back then, if I got eliminated, it only affected me, so I could stay relatively calm. But now that I'm preparing as part of a team... the responsibility feels much heavier."

"That's what being in a team is like."

"Yes. The pressure was enormous... but at the same time, it felt good knowing I finally had teammates I could rely on."

Ji Hyuk nodded before continuing.

"...Personally, I'm still disappointed with my dancing. Watching X Buster today really showed me how lacking I still am."

"You've improved a lot, though."

"No... I'm still nowhere near good enough."

Compared to the stiff, awkward dancing he'd had when he first arrived, he'd improved by leaps and bounds.

I smiled reassuringly.

"Still, I can see the potential. Keep this up and you'll definitely be good enough to debut."

"Yes! I'll work even harder!"

He really was improving at an incredible pace.

If he kept training like this, he might never become the designated dance member...

But no one would ever call him a bad dancer either.

Besides, we'd never recruited him because of his dancing in the first place.

"All right."

I rubbed my hands together.

"Let's take a look at everything you've learned so far."

"Yes."

"You've taken a lot of notes."

The notebook he handed me was meticulously organized.

Who had taught him what.

What feedback he'd received.

How he'd tried to improve afterward.

Everything.

The trainee folded his hands politely while watching my reaction.

"Hmm..."

Overall...

I could clearly see the production team's philosophy.

Each instructor was carefully building solid fundamentals within their own specialty.

Though...

"Hmm... Has everyone been really busy? The pace feels a little slow."

"Ah."

Ji Hyuk nodded.

"Team Leader Na Sangyoon said you'd definitely say that. He told me you'd think the lessons were progressing too slowly."

"...?"

"He told me to answer... 'That's because you're a genius.'"

"Oh, that's..."

I laughed awkwardly.

"When I was learning, things were a little different. Director Jo taught me through an intensive crash course."

"Director Jo also said, 'A sparrow shouldn't try to keep up with a stork.' He said your pace was extraordinary."

"..."

So I really had learned unusually fast.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, I finished checking Ji Hyuk's notes before glancing at the calendar.

October 2018.

Flip.

Flip.

I turned page after page until I reached December.

There, the full 2019 calendar was printed.

I tapped each month with my finger.

"If I remember correctly from the meeting..."

Ji Hyuk swallowed nervously.

I pointed to one month.

"June?"

"Yeah. I think they're aiming for early summer. That gives us about eight months."

I smiled at the trainee, whose eyes were already sparkling at the word debut.

"Eight months isn't very long... but it's also enough time to accomplish something meaningful."

"My goal..."

I looked him straight in the eye.

"...is to raise your composing ability to an entirely different level during those eight months."

I wanted my juniors to become artists with colors all their own.

Company-designed concepts were fine.

But I wanted them to become singers capable of expressing the music they wanted to create.

To do that...

Every group needed at least one composer.

"Guys! Gather up for a second. Let's figure out everyone's tastes."

Just like when we'd created Fireworks, sitting together and discussing what kinds of music we loved and what kinds of stages we wanted to perform.

Our current trainees all had talent.

But none of them had yet emerged as the obvious musical creator.

Which was why I'd chosen Ji Hyuk.

"I'll tell you this now."

My smile faded.

"The time you'll spend learning directly from me won't be very long. Most of your lessons will come from other people."

"Yes."

"And it won't be easy. Some of the assignments I give you may keep you awake all night. You may even want to quit. You might become so busy that you can't keep up anymore."

I deliberately spoke firmly.

Then I smiled again.

"But if you truly learn from me..."

I paused.

"...you might end up writing your own debut song."

"My own... debut song..."

"Whether it becomes the title track or just a B-side, I can't promise. But if you keep learning..."

I pointed at him.

"...eight months from now, your name will be listed in the album credits as a composer."

I let him think.

Head lowered, Ji Hyuk remained silent for several moments.

Then he raised his eyes and nodded firmly.

"I'm ready, Sunbae."

"Good."

Just as I was about to begin today's orientation—

Rustle.

Ji Hyuk knelt down, rummaged through his bag, and held something out.

"What is it?"

"A gift. I prepared it for you."

"...Red ginseng?"

A neatly wrapped red box.

His eyes lit up.

"I've been following you since the HBS reality show back in 2014. You always seemed to love red ginseng. Even now, during your livestreams, I still see you drinking it sometimes... so I bought you some."

"Ji Hyuk... you didn't have to..."

Judging from a trainee's wallet, this couldn't have been cheap.

Ji Hyuk smiled shyly.

"You've been making time for me out of your incredibly busy schedule. I couldn't come empty-handed."

Then he grinned.

"And... I won the survival show, remember? The prize money made me pretty rich, Sunbae."

"Ji Hyuk... if you're buying gifts like this, you should be spending that money on your family..."

"I already did."

He nodded.

"Oh! Speaking of family... my grandmother came shopping with me when I bought this."

He said there was a special letter inside.

Curious, I opened the envelope.

There was a postcard.

Written in shaky handwriting.

Please take good care of my grandson.

Beneath it...

Another line.

—Another Deoksun

I looked back at Ji Hyuk.

"Come to think of it... your grandmother's name is Song Deoksun, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"..."

I grabbed Ji Hyuk's hand.

"One homework exemption coupon."

"...Huh?"

"Hehe...!"

"...??"

Clearing my throat, I smiled brightly at my adorable disciple.

"Now then."

"Yes!"

"Let's get started, my disciple."

"Yes!"

"For the happiness of every Deoksun in the world..."

I raised a fist dramatically.

"...let's work hard together!"

"Yes!"

The lesson lasted about an hour.

"Good work."

"Yeeees..."

Ji Hyuk packed up his notebook in a daze.

Understandably so.

I'd compressed an absurd amount of know-how into a single uninterrupted hour.

Just reviewing it would probably take him nine hours.

"I'll see you at the next lesson. It'll probably be a while. Right after the encore concert, I'm heading to Alaska."

"Ah... the malamutes."

"I'll contact you again after I get back."

"Yes, Sunbae. Have a safe trip to Antarctica."

His eyes were spinning.

Apparently his brain was still overloaded.

He stumbled out while mixing up Alaska and Antarctica.

If you could actually see heat rising from someone's head, steam would probably have been pouring from his ears.

"...Maybe I crammed in a little too much."

Closing my laptop, I left the studio.

The sixth floor—the artists' floor.

Stretching as I walked, I followed the sound of laughter.

"Whoa. So that's it."

"That's amazing."

The two Street Boys members and my little underlings were gathered around a glass display case.

Inside were trophies from the Mango Chart Awards, K-Net Music Awards, Billboard, the VMAs, the AMAs, and countless others.

But everyone was gathered around the rabbit doll in the very center.

"What are you doing?"

"Receiving an audience with Rabbit Uncle."

Hanjo pointed at it before asking Ri Hyuk,

"So you ask it a question, then press the button? And the rabbit answers with 'Yes' or 'No'?"

"That's right. There's no scientific basis behind it, though..."

So that was what they were doing.

Preparing to ask the miraculous Rabbit Uncle a question.

Hanjo grinned.

"When I was little, I dreamed of becoming a magical princess... or a magical girl. Do you think I'll become a magical boy someday?"

He pressed the button.

Bzzzz—

Inside the display case...

The rabbit slowly raised the YES sign.

Everyone burst out laughing.

"Congratulations. Your dream's coming true."

"This rabbit's hilarious."

As Kiwon stepped forward to ask his own question, Hanjo turned to me.

"The lesson's over?"

"Just finished."

"I saw Ji Hyuk walk by. The kid looked completely out of it. I don't know what you did in there..."

"There wasn't enough time, so I just stuffed everything I could into his head."

"Fair enough."

Nodding, Hanjo handed me a gift bag.

"Oh. Here."

"What's this? Is today Present Day or something?"

"I heard you got cast in that superhero movie. Consider it a congratulations."

I peeked inside.

"...Wine?"

"Non-alcoholic wine. Expensive stuff too."

"Thanks."

I'll have a glass the next time something good happens.

Thinking that, I wandered around the sixth floor with the two Street Boys members.

Everyone was busy, and we'd have to part ways soon.

When our schedules didn't overlap, chances to meet were rare.

So even something as simple as chatting while strolling around the floor was valuable.

"Those kids really are young."

"You could definitely feel they were juniors."

"They were adorable."

The conversation naturally turned to each other's trainees.

This one's talented.

That one's interesting.

Then one of us asked,

"Who's the oldest in X Buster? Hongju?"

"They're all about the same age. Hongju and Fullip are in the oldest group. I think they're second-year high school students."

"Our oldest are Ji Hyuk and Jinho. They're second-years too."

"So... how old is that? Eighteen?"

As I spoke, I turned to Ri Hyuk.

"Wait... what birth year does that make them? Ri Hyuk, do you know?"

"I think they were born in 2001."

"Oh... 2001..."

I stopped.

"...Wait. What birth year?"

"2001."

Hanjo and I froze solid.

While the younger members tilted their heads in confusion...

Silence settled over the two of us, both born in 1993.

"..."

"..."

Holding up the gift bag, I quietly asked Hanjo,

"You said this was non-alcoholic?"

"Yeah."

"...Let's drink."

"...Yeah."

With mournful expressions, Hanjo and I slowly took out the bottle of wine.