Chapter 111

“It’s fine.”

Whatever came his way, Gowon needed experience more than anything right now.

This was no time to be picky about where he performed.

Splash Night, just as Chief Manager Park had explained, was a completely different kind of stage from anything Gowon had done before. It would be a good challenge for a rookie.

...More importantly.

The time limit on his wish bet with Baek Hanje was shrinking one day at a time.

Gowon had no intention of turning down any appearance opportunity that came his way.

Even if he still hadn’t decided what kind of wish he wanted to make.

Baek Hanje.

Whenever Gowon thought of him, he wanted to grasp one more thread connecting them, no matter what form it took.

***

One sweltering weekend.

Gowon arrived at the Splash Night venue in Gangneung.

Across the sprawling plaza, audience members enjoyed the event however they pleased, then moved closer to the stage and cheered whenever a singer they cared about appeared. In that sense, it was similar to the jazz festival.

“Wahahaha!”

“Waaaah!”

The atmosphere, however, was much more energetic by nature...

And far less restrained.

People wore thin clothes they didn’t mind getting soaked in and were drenched from head to toe by jets of water erupting from every direction and water guns being fired at one another.

“If you’ve had too much to drink, take a break before coming back in!”

“Ah! My phone! Move!”

“Where do we refill the water guns?”

“These stairs are exit only! The entrance is over there!”

“Follow our Stargram account here at the venue and you’ll get a free tasting of our newly released passion-fruit highball....”

The water-gun fights alone were chaotic enough, but separate sponsor events were also being held at the back of the plaza, so attention on the stage itself was hardly intense.

Then Gowon’s name appeared on the giant screen.

A thin cheer cut through the noise.

Gowon walked out onto the stage with his dancers.

...Splash Night.

Baek Hanje, who had been the headliner at the jazz festival, had gone on latest of all, taking the stage from eight until the event ended.

In other words, the later the slot, the more popular and anticipated the artist.

Which meant Gowon, assigned a two-o’clock slot close to the beginning of the event, could not expect particularly focused attention.

He had only twenty minutes, too.

Fans who had rushed to Gangneung at the last minute after hearing he would appear formed roughly five rows in front of the stage.

“GOWON!!!!!”

The back might have been chaotic, but they screamed with everything they had as though determined to tell him that some people had come here for him alone.

...Thank you.

Gowon waved at One and Only with genuine gratitude.

He had prepared three songs for today.

First came <DEEP>, the most publicly recognizable of the three, though fundamentally tinged with a melancholy mood. For the concept, he would perform it in a white shirt.

After that, he would take the shirt off, leaving the short-sleeved T-shirt underneath as his costume change, then raise the energy with the hip-hop mood of <DRIFT>.

Finally, he would finish with <Unlimited (festival ver.)>, rearranged with a fast-beat dance break added.

As he stood onstage waiting for the instrumental intro, countless voices blended together around him.

“Enough with the guy! When’s Girls’ Party coming out?!”

“Why’d Gowon get rid of the blond hair?”

“DEEP! DEEP! GO ONE WAY!!!”

Boos, exclamations, fan chants....

Amid all of it, Gowon took his opening pose, one hand tightening around his own throat.

The first line was just about to begin.

......!

Without warning, a blast of water struck Gowon square in the face.

Even considering the nature of Splash Night, he had never taken an unexpected hit like that onstage before.

Of course it startled him.

...No. It’s fine.

—Don’t give me room to breathe

Just take my hands

Instead of following the original choreography, Gowon dragged his hand in sequence over his soaked hair, the back of his neck, then across his chest.

“Aaaaaah!!! Gowon!!!”

Even the One and Only fans who had flared up thinking, What crazy bastard shot water at his eyes?! seemed reassured by how unfazed he looked.

Gowon quickly cleared his vision and stepped into the next movement without faltering.

Dancing to <DEEP> with water dripping from his face, Gowon brought to mind the legendary encore stage that even nonfans had clicked on at least once.

People who hadn’t cared before caught sight of his clean, delicate features on the big screen and began turning around one by one.

“Oh, isn’t that the guy from that music-show clip?”

As the song moved into the chorus, Gowon met One and Only’s eyes once more before looking back into the camera.

—Into your world

Deep, Deep, Deep, Deep Down

On an audition program, he had once been forced to fight desperately just to stand out among trainees sharing the same stage.

And Gowon had gone through that beside the enormous shooting star that was Baek Hanje.

He had learned a great deal in a very short time.

If his skill still couldn’t reach that level yet—

then he would dance hard enough that people had no choice but to look.

He would pour enough desperation into the song that it reached the far end of the plaza.

He would make them see him.

A thrill ran through Gowon’s body as he thought of Baek Hanje and continued moving.

When the electric-guitar sound of the second song, <DRIFT>, kicked in, a livelier energy than <DEEP> spread through the crowd.

At first, interest seemed limited to the fans.

Then Gowon felt it spreading backward one row at a time.

Their reactions came into focus with almost binocular clarity.

Some looked intrigued.

Some still watched him with open displeasure.

Others looked surprised or impressed.

Any of it was fine.

Let’s push harder.

—Thank you. Now I’m going to have some fun with you too.

That was how Baek Hanje had drawn audiences into his performances, making them sink even deeper into the stage with him.

Gowon performed the original choreography through the first verse, then headed toward the water cannon during the instrumental break.

He aimed it into the air above the plaza and fired.

The excited audience immediately began shooting their water guns back toward the stage from every direction.

Powerful movements continued through the spray.

His hair was soaked enough to cling together in tangled strands, while his red lips curved into a bright smile and his cheeks flushed with exertion.

Right on cue, water jets erupted from both sides of the plaza.

The longing contained in the lyrics did not cool under the cold water.

It only burned more fiercely.

By the time the <DRIFT> stage ended, the cheers were twice as loud as they had been at the beginning.

...Not enough.

He had used Splash Night’s equipment during the second performance and drawn people’s attention.

But it still wasn’t enough.

He wanted to burn himself up even further if that was what it took to captivate the audience.

Like Baek Hanje, who had once begun singing and made everyone in the park stop where they were and look at him.

Someday, I want a stage like that too....

One that would shock even that incredible senior....

One that—

Haa, haa....

Before he even had time to catch his breath, <Unlimited>, the most choreographically demanding of his three title tracks, began.

Gowon swept his wet hair back and stared fiercely ahead.

The dance-break section of this song was the strongest weapon he had prepared.

A half-baked trump card was worse than not playing one at all.

He had learned that lesson thoroughly during the self-produced-content mini-game with Cha Yensu.

He had practiced more than enough beforehand.

Then what else can I do now, here onstage?

A summer festival soaked in water.

A relentless fast beat without limits....

With instinct taking over his thoughts, Gowon remembered the explosive reaction from the time he had dumped water over his head during an encore stage.

That action was what had ultimately led to him being invited here.

Something sudden that no one expects....

At last, the dance break began, rearranged with EDM layered into the upbeat rhythm.

Gowon grabbed the bottom hem of his soaked T-shirt.

“Uh—wait?!”

“Gowon, no way. Gowon, Gowon...!”

Without the slightest hesitation, both hands pulled the shirt upward.

He was well over six feet tall, with a solid frame built from hard physical work ever since his growth years.

His abs, kept defined through exercise and practice even outside active promotion periods, came into view.

Then his solar plexus.

And finally, his broad chest and shoulders were completely exposed.

“GOWON!! COVER UP! NO, TAKE MORE OFF! NO, COVER UP!! NO, FINISH TAKING IT OFF! AAAAAH!!!”

“BABY KITTY, YOU CAN’T DO THAT!!! FUCK, WHY WON’T MY CAMERA TURN ON?! GOWON, LOOK OVER HERE!!!”

“Holy shit, wow, wow, holy shit! WAAAAAAAH!!!!!