After that, it was a breeze.
The concept photos released one by one raised the fans’ expectations, and after that, the group photos that were released culminated.
“Our fans really liked it. did you hear me?”
“Uh, I asked my manager hyung earlier because he was smiling, and he said yes.”
“But why don’t you feel this way?”
We were blocked from the outside and only went to and from the company and the dormitory, so we had no way of knowing the reaction of the public. Even after going to school, to make up for the lack of sleep, I often returned to work without even having a proper conversation with my classmates.
“What is open today? Is it your turn on the list?”
“Yeah, I heard that you upload that and some highlights of some songs.”
We checked the schedule again today and talked about the things we need to do and the rest of the public schedule.
Fortunately, after all the practice was over, I was able to think rationally.
Recording and filming were all over, but the work for me and the members was not over.
There were 10 songs on the album, excluding intro and outro.
It was our first album, so it was good to have a full album thanks to the company’s support for our will to hold it tight, but it was our body that was shattered by greed… .
“Ah, I also want to see the reaction of the fans… .”
“Arthur, don’t go to sleep after seeing malicious comments for nothing.”
“So I’m holding it in, but it’s hard because it feels like I’m staring at the wall.”
Team leader Sohyun came today as well and left a firm statement telling us not to try to find out and never tell us about a reaction.
If there was a reaction, malicious comments would run as if there was no reaction, and the team leader, who we were still like chicks in our arms, was worried about the mentality of the members.
Such a choice by the team leader seemed natural to me, even though I was not familiar with the circumstances of the company.
Even now, we often think about how we will look and chatter among ourselves, but if we had actually looked for it, we would all have been stuck on the floor with a gloomy expression.
It was a rookie who was scared as he ran when malicious comments ran, and sad and difficult without it.
However, in the case of me, who actually did good things, things were a little better than the members who were not immune to malicious comments.
If you add a little bit of exaggeration, fighting the many malicious commenters who quarrel with the main camp was like everyday life.
Things that come with all sorts of nonsensical rumors and rumors, shoot direct messages on the agency’s main account (the act of swearing, slander, etc. by tagging the agency’s account) and clamoring for an explanation when there’s nothing to explain.
They pretend to be a fan while cosplaying and comparing them to other idols.
As a personal fan, there are things that are worse than nothing other than your favorite members.
Because of others like me, there are probably hundreds of emails that I personally took the PDF and sent to my agency email.
At first, I was terrified that our children, who were angry and resentful, and kind and precious, would be hurt because of these malicious commenters.
But later on, there was me who made a habit of making PDF files first with the tip of my nose sneering at me.
Of course, while fighting malicious commenters, there were people who asked me, a male fan, about my sexual orientation and my parents, but at that time, I was a combatant, so I applied it with a bamboo spear.
Now that I have become a party, it may be different.
All of this was possible because of my sister who took the lead and showed me the right path.
My older sister, who had been active in the idol world for a long time, even commanded the war like a commander-in-chief.
She seemed to relieve the stress accumulated at work there, but she was afraid to ask directly.
As my thoughts began to bite my tail, I suddenly wanted to see my sister. Damn it.
“Don’t say anything useless and let’s try the choreography again. I think this motion keeps getting twisted.”
He kicked Himchan’s buttocks, who was trembling, and changed the topic with an excuse to watch my movements.
It was much better to be in a state of being so busy that I couldn’t think than to sit down in fear and worry about buying one.
Also, when it comes to dancing, it’s Himchan who always fights with all his heart, so it was quite helpful for correcting movements.
The already released concept photos contain boys with bright and lively expressions in the early scenes of the music video.
But there was a message that that wasn’t all there was, and there was a little curiosity that fans might have noticed.
There is nothing that stimulates the intellectual curiosity of fans more than digging into the worldview and interpreting the music video.
However, if this album goes bankrupt, I couldn’t put all my worries aside because it would be the end of my worldview or whatever.
And as time passed, the highlight medley was finally released and the MV teaser 2 was released.
The members running around the grass with frightened faces were caught on the shaking screen.
The camera approaching as if chasing from under her chin, the face of Se-bin who collapses in tears, and the pitiful appearance of Young-bin trying to get Se-bin up somehow.
Himchan, who struggles to see if he was injured while running away, and Jihwan, who is supporting him.
Kyung-hwan, who is lying on the floor with a pale face whether he has lost his mind, and Ha-jun, who is vigilant with a determined face behind his back as if to protect him.
After briefly showing the members’ situation, the camera went up to the distant sky again and changed to an angle as if watching the children.
After that, on the screen that turned black, there were six unknown masks on the floor.
Blurry under those masks Are you all right? The phrase came to mind and then disappeared quickly.
* * *
While we were busy practicing, the debut showcase date was finally decided.
“Guys, the show date has been confirmed for June 10th.”
“… ?!”
“What, why is no one talking?”
As always, while we were spurring the choreography of the title song with the heavy affection of Je-young, it suddenly appeared in front of us and threw a bomb, right?
Looking back, it seemed that I hadn’t been able to have a proper conversation with the manager for a while.
Since I am struggling right now, there were more days when I was traveling while sleeping, so I did not have the mind to care about who was present or not.
“Huh… . So we’re doing a showcase, right?”
“Next week?”
“It will happen in a week… ?”
All the members who smiled haphazardly and handed the team leader Sohyun a question or two had their eyes wide open.
Bizarre expressions that you can’t tell whether you’re happy, worried, or scared.
I didn’t look in the mirror, but my expression seemed to be no different from them.
“The company prepares everything, so all you have to do is prepare for the stage and interview. Don’t worry, it’s been going on forever.”
“That, with the stage movement, uh… Shouldn’t there be a comment in between?”
At least, having seen the showcase, I gathered my mind and asked a question, and the team leader gave me a strange expression, but I couldn’t bear it because I hated it for some reason.
“You just have to keep the formation you practiced so far, and we’ve already finished talking with Master Je-young. Don’t worry, because starting today, you can prepare things to communicate with your fans along with preparing for an interview in the afternoon.”
“Well, that’s just… , Hahaha.”
I felt dizzy, so I wanted to ask the team leader if the script came out so easily or if I would have enough time to practice with a week, but all that came out of my mouth was the sound of laughter.
Can I make my debut like this just like roasting beans in some kind of lightning fire?
After the manager hyung, who was grabbing our hair from behind, took a step forward and explained the situation, we were able to calm down a little.
As I always think, the team leader has the talent to make people go crazy by only talking in the middle.
It was said that the debut date was the date that was written on the day we renewed our contract as artists a while ago, and the PR team has already poured articles on it.
They even said that a fan cafe that we didn’t know had already been created, so they signed up for it and received reservations.
“No, why did you notify us a week in advance?”
“that’s right! We are the parties!”
“Guys, think carefully. Your ignorance for the past two weeks.”
We were furious at the thought that the company was ignoring us too much, and we had no choice but to remain silent once again.
I thought I was going to die before, but the manager hyung often asked us about the increased amount of practice, basic etiquette, foreign languages and precautions we had to put in our heads.
As I was answering in a crazy state, I couldn’t really remember anything, but there was one thing that came to my mind right now.
“I was just talking about that Blue Square and Ilji Art Hall, wasn’t it?”
“That’s right.”
How did none of us think it would be a debut showcase?
I looked at Hajun with blank eyes, but our leader was only blinking. Looking at the situation, it seemed that the situation was not different from mine.
Even the first stage of Unravel that I can remember was the music broadcast stage at M headquarters.
As the members changed and the album itself changed, it seemed like the company had decided to proceed.
In addition, since the announcement of Unravel’s official debut, the center voting has been carried out through the idol creation website, and the center of this title song was determined to be Hajun.
We were practicing the choreography according to the formation.
All of this was the big picture of the company?
“But do you have time for this? You have to practice.”
“So, where do we debut?”
“Blue Square Samsung Card Hall.”
“I will turn. haha.”
“What is the stage size?”
“Are we really possible?
After that, we had so many crazy days that we carve in our bones that the week is such a short time.
The choreography for the title song and the sub song was okay, honestly, as we practiced and matched the angles as we have always done. It’s because practice is what I’ve been doing every day since the song came out.
However, it was more difficult than I thought to read the expected interview details, memorize the set list, split the time again, and write notes for the gifts to be given to the fans.
At first, the company thought about 300 people and was preparing, but when we started accepting applications, the number exceeded our expectations, so we chose a place that could easily accommodate about 1,000 people.
It’s a showcase that can be viewed without purchasing an album, just by requesting it, so even non-fans must have been interested in applying.
We shut our mouths at the decision of the company that thought it was publicity, even if it was a loss right away.
Hearing this, all the members had to shoulder the burden on their shoulders, but honestly, they didn’t hate it.
Because I understood it to mean that I believe in the possibility of Unravel.
As I lost my mind and wasted time, it became the day of the showcase.
Himchan, unable to control his trembling legs, kept crying while applying makeup, and Sebin was removing the third lollipop.
Youngbin was lying on the sofa, fainting, Kyunghwan was constantly muttering something, and she seemed to be checking the lyrics again, perhaps.
“Jihwan, are you okay?”
“Yes? heh heh heh This is a dream. it’s okay.”
“… He’s not normal either.”
And in front of me, Hajun and Poing were talking to me in pairs, but my soul had already flown away and waved to the main body.
Can we do this stage properly?