Chapter 164:


    “What?”


    I let out an exmation without realizing it when I saw the unexpected contact from that person.


    “Why? What’s up?”


    Kyunghwa asked me curiously, holding Aeongi in her arms, as I stopped unpacking and stared at my phone near the entrance.


    “Ah, no.”


    It wasn’t anyone else, but I didn’t want to show Kyunghwa the message I got from Kang Yu-geon.


    Of course… I didn’t want to show it to Yi-jun either, who had a crush on Kang Yu-geon.


    “I don’t know what it is, but if you’re going to use your phone, at least put away your stuff first. Aeongi and Pposili are going crazy.”


    “Ah, uh…”Both of them seemed startled by the sudden influx of unfamiliar things into the house. At the same time, they were curious and cautious, hovering around the packages we brought.


    ‘You bastard. You’re not even a real dog.’


    I muttered to myself about Pposili, but he didn’t care and wagged his fluffy tail, approaching the packages to sniff them.


    “This is from the advertisingpany, they gave it to us. You have one too, hyung.”


    Seon-woo quickly handed Kyunghwa a package, as he had a lot of stuff to carry, including Kyunghwa’s share.


    “Oh, this is a new product?”


    “Yeah. The main ad is probably going to be about the color line, but they also want to promote the basic line, so they asked us to film some vlogs using them at home.”


    “I get what they want. Let’s move the mirror to where the sunes in well and film it. That way, the picture will look better.”


    Kyunghwa looked much better than I had worried, being alone at the amodation all this time.


    We finished moving our stuff, and the others were busy looking for tripods and lights to film their videos.


    ‘I guess we can take our time with dinner.’


    I thought this was a good time to check the message from Yu-geon again.


    [YOU] (picture) 6:11 PM


    I opened the messenger app to see what he had sent me, and it was a picture of Gwangan Bridge taken from Haeundae.


    What? You said you were taking a break from activities and I was worried, but you suddenly went to Busan? Busan???


    I frowned at the random travel photo, and he must have seen that I read it, because he sent me another picture.


    It was a picture of a famousndmark in Haeundae.


    Doesn’t he get recognized by fans when he goes around like this? His physique and proportions are so good that I think they would know him even if he covered his face.


    I quickly typed a reply.


    [Me] What are you doing? 6:27 PM


    [Me] The official channel said you were taking a break for health reasons. 6:28 PM


    I had heard a vague story from Hwijin, and it was the same. He said he had a health problem and left without returning, and then notified them of his rest.


    He had done simr things a few times before, so I guessed thepany was thinking he woulde back eventually.


    Anyway, since there were eight other members left, it wasn’t a fatal problem for their activities if one of them was missing. They just had to deduct his share from the settlement for that period.


    It would be too big of a deal to kick him out for leaving without permission, and they still thought he had enough value to use.


    ‘He should just go solo, but the other members would hate that.’


    I knew what kind of psychology drove him to act like that, but that didn’t mean I sympathized with him. He should have looked for a middle ground with thepany instead of putting off the issue.


    Tsk, I lightly clicked my tongue as another photo arrived from Yu-geon.


    It was a scenic shot taken from a hotel famous for its ocean view.


    ‘Who does he think he’s fooling?’


    I felt like an idiot for worrying about him when he was out of contact and disappeared when he was in a bad shape.


    [Me] You seem to be fine, I’m d. 6:31 PM


    I wondered if I should reply with something like, I’ll go prepare dinner if you don’t need anything else, and waited for a moment for the receipt to show up.


    ‘…’


    But he seemed to have learned how to be irritating from somewhere. Or maybe he thought he had sent enough photos.


    He didn’t read my message even after 10 minutes.


    ‘Is he insane or what?’


    He sent me new photos as soon as the 1 disappeared, but he didn’t read mine? I felt my blood pressure rising and tried to find some peace of mind by thinking about the dinner menu.


    Today’s dinner menu was mackerel steak.


    I was lucky to get some good quality mackerel with plump flesh, so I debated whether to steam or grill it on my way home.


    I chose to grill it.


    I nned to use a lot of butter, so it wouldn’t be a perfect health food…


    But fish would be better for my body than meat. I swallowed the saliva that filled my mouth and headed to the kitchen.


    I cleaned the mackerel pieces and put them in an oven dish with foil.


    I seasoned the mackerel with some salt, herbs, pepper, and lemon juice, and topped it with some butter pieces.


    I added some garnishes like celery, garlic, and potatoes, and baked it for about 20 minutes.


    Since the main dish was a bit greasy, I could make the rice a bit healthier. I took out some vegetables and cauliflower rice that I had prepared for fried rice and stir-fried them lightly.


    ‘This also has butter in it… It’s not really a diet meal.’


    But it was still healthier than normal food. I shrugged off the guilt and finished preparing the meal.


    Before I put the well-cooked mackerel on the table, I peeked into the oven and the smell of the cooked fish and the burnt butter was devastating.


    ‘The smell is insane.’


    I reflexively salivated. I finished the meal preparation and checked the direction where the members were making noise. They seemed to have a rough idea of what to do and decided to eat first and finishter.


    “Wow, you already prepared the meal?”


    Seon-woo came into the kitchen as if he wanted to help me with something, but I had already done everything that needed to be done.


    “Just go and set the table.”


    “Okay!”


    I moved the dish from the oven to the table with oven gloves and scooped the rice into a bowl. By then, another 15 minutes had passed.


    ‘Did he read it by now?’


    I turned around and checked the messenger with a slight hope, but the 1 was still there.


    ‘Ugh…!’


    He was such a weirdo. I decided to stop caring about Yu-geon for now and sat down at the table.


    “You guys worked hard today. Let’s eat.”


    It was more like ‘after’ than ‘before’ since we had done so much aftering home. I ignored that with a dull look and picked up the chopsticks. The greasy and plump fish melted in my mouth.


    This is happiness.


    My anger that had soared because of Kang Yu-geon was washed away.


    It was delicious to eat the crispy edges coated with salty butter and the soft flesh that was steamed.


    The others also ate the fish as if it was their first time tasting something so good, and finished their portions in no time.


    “I ate well!”


    “Me too.”


    “Me too, hyung!”


    They didn’t need to be told or asked to clean up after themselves, they just scattered and started tidying up as if they wanted to let me rest.


    “You worked hard making this, so go wash up and rest.”


    Seong-won, who was usually quiet unless he was picking a fight, pushed my back and kicked me out of the kitchen.


    “Huh…?”


    I felt proud and happy watching them from afar, but I also felt a strange sense of regret as I headed to my room.


    I had just finished the CF pre-meeting, and tomorrow I had the costume team meeting for the third mission, followed by practice, and then the CF photo shoot.


    The CF video would not be broadcasted until a few monthster, but they nned to select three outdoor billboards that were avable in Seoul and post them right away for promotion.


    I wonder what it would feel like to see my face hanging on a huge billboard in the middle of Seoul.


    The most popr spots were already booked months ago, so it would be hard, but still, it would be somewhere visible.


    I should take them there and take a proof shot if I get a chance.


    I want to thank the fans for giving me this opportunity to show my face.


    It’s not just a business activity, but it’s natural to be grateful to the people who helped me. Hmm. I nodded and stroked the head of Pposili, who had followed me into the room.


    The shooting schedule for preparing the third mission was so packed that a week passed in a blink of an eye, and the photo shoot day arrived.


    Normally, not all the members had to go, but this time, they decided to use the YouTube channel that had been neglected since the end of the first season of Crisis Idol.


    They saw us every week on Boys Be Ambitious, but the fans who expected a solo variety show were not satisfied with the 15 minutes or so of screen time that was given to Climax.


    ‘We need to upload some content.’


    So, after consulting with Favorite Lab, they agreed to let us film the photo shoot process as a vlog and upload it to the Climax channel.


    Of course, they had to put a [Paid Advertisement Included] sticker, but they also received additional advertising fees.


    In other words, it was a win-win situation for both sides.


    That’s why only Seon-woo and Seong-won were shooting, but the rest of the members also apanied them to the studio like parents visiting.


    Of course, the other members couldn’t just sit and watch while the two were busy shooting, so we nned to tour the headquarters of Pure Cake Factory, where Favorite Lab’sb was located.


    “Yawn…”


    While Yi-jun and Seon-woo, who were sleepy in the morning, were dozing off, Kyunghwa was monitoring thetest popr variety shows in his spare time.


    I should… watch the My Idol stages before the shooting. I said I would watch them all before the second mission ended, but I forgot.


    I was about to turn it on when I saw Seong-won looking out the window with a slightly nervous expression.


    “Are you nervous?”


    Without realizing it, I added ament and Seong-won turned his gaze to look at me.


    “Really? Not much.”


    But his expression was colder than usual, as if he never smiled brightly.


    “Fine, whatever.”


    I ended the conversation, not wanting to argue more, and he pouted his lips.


    Hey, you said you weren’t nervous. What’s your problem? When I stared at him with wide eyes, he asked me in a low voice.


    “What… what would you do if I said I was nervous?”


    What’s with the attitude? I shrugged and answered.


    “I could at least cheer you up. Tell you to hang in there.”


    I lightly tapped his shoulder, keeping some distance, and clenched my phone.


    There were more things to worry about than him.


    The new manager and the old manager are sitting side by side in the driver’s seat and the passenger’s seat. Kang Yu-geon, who suddenly sent me a travel photo and then stopped contacting me. The observation reality show filming with Hwijin that wasing soon.


    I hoped none of them would cause any trouble. I tried to shake off the bad thoughts and looked at the huge building that was getting closer.