Chapter 24
<strong>Why Cannot We Date?</strong>Grade B Trantion: Manually edited MTL. Tranted and interpreted as best as I can.
Mixed with some Korean terms. Misinterpretation may ur due to limitedprehensive ability.
Awkward English, bad grammar, and typos may often ur as Trantor is not fluent in English and not edited by Editor nor proofed by Proofreader.
-Hey, Factfix is out FK
-Guys, Factfix exploded
January 1st is a very important day that terrifies entertainment workers and fans.
This is because the announcement of arge scandal which has be as solid as a tradition by a paparazzi media, Factfix, will be posted on New Year’s Day.<sup>1</sup>IRL counterpart is Dispatch. You can look up “Dispatch new year scandals” and you’ll find real-life examples.
［Exclusive] Lure Seung Hoon, Lovely Day Hee Jin “The Strongest Idol Couple” Lovey Dovey? Car Date
-FK???
-Isn’t it crazy?
The article this time was also shocking. It was such a match because besides being from the number 1 boy group and number 1 girl group in terms of sales alone, Lee Hee Jin was the most popr in Lovely Day and Lure Kim Seung Hoon was also the most popr.
-Hey, you said fans are your girlfriend FK
-Wasn’t that the date of a fan signing? Did you go out to y with your real girlfriend in the back?
Naturally, real-time search terms were lined up andmunity reactions exploded. There was even amunity that exploded until 404 popped up.
Sales of goods rted to Lure and Lovely Day were all over the second-hand marketce, and long unstanning posts were posted on the fan cafe every ten minutes.
-lolololololol pretended to be clean like that, in the end
-Heejin is going to be stripped so hard lol Lure fans are so hardcore brrr
-Didn’t egg ounts<sup>2</sup>Twitter new ounts with the basic egg profile picture. Specifically refers to fake ounts that people make to spread rumors since in South Korea, Social Media management is quite strict and can get sued for things like false news and defamation. said they were dating 5 months ago?
-Hey, all 30 pages of fan cafe are unstanning posts lolololol
In addition, there are also people who scratched both fandoms, Sommeliers<sup>3</sup>Thoseizens who are particrly fast in sensing that there’s something. who said it was smelly from before, and people who captured the fan cafe reaction and ryed the situation in which the fandom fell out in real-time.
Their intentions are irrelevant. They were just people who wanted to see others unhappy.
In the meantime, the ignorant foreign fans posted hashtags such as<em> #Weloveseonghoon</em> that made domestic fans burst out.<sup>4</sup> Korean fans thought that kind of hashtag is only pouring oil on the me. This is a bit hard to exin as the view of international and Korean fans about dating is so different. For more, Ian himself will exin it.
“This ce’s rice cake soup is tasty.”
“It’s cooked well.”
While the neighborhood next door was like a funeral, Ian and the members set up a modest table of meals in their dorm. To make rice cake soup was simple, just buy beef bone broth sold on the market and boil it with rice cakes.
“Did <em>hyung</em> see Factfix?”
“Uh, water for me pliz.”
“It was said they went undercover for a month in front of the dorm to take photos.”
“Crazy, so creepy. That’s <em>sasaeng</em>, not reporter.”
Kim Hyun gulped down the water. When he silently reached out his fist, the other six also reached out their hands. Tension was evident on their faces.
“Loser does the dishes. Rock paper scissors!”
“Ah!”
“<em>Niceee</em>!”
Like a picture, everyone put out scissors and only Ian put out paper. Ian cried out desperately.
“Three rounds! Three rounds!”
“No, go back.”
“Ah, let’s humanly pick one more to clean up.”
“Huh, no way. Get lost~ Washing dishes also includes cleaning up.”
Jo Tae Woong patted Ian on the back and slipped into his room. Ian sighed deeply and cleaned up the table.
‘By the way, do you have nothing to say?’
［What is?]
‘Factfix.’
［What’s the point? It’s so much fun.]
Jin was shaking a bucket of popcorn. No matter how many times he witnessed it, he can’t get used to those bizarre hands.
‘Oh yeah?’
It was clear that Jin himself was ashamed of the past as he kept avoiding it when asked about the past. Or there’s something that holds him back.
I don’t think he was just a <em>homma</em>, at least a worker in the entertainment industry or a showbiz reporter…
Ian made various deductions as if possessed by a great detective and half confirmed that Jin was a reporter in the past.
‘Did you hear anything about Kim Seung Hoon?’
［That he’s fking rude? But that’s a fact everyone on this floor knows. Woah, by the way, how did he seduce Lee Hee Jin? Is he the warm type to his girl?]
‘He must have the charm.’
Ian answered soullessly.
If he was a reporter, he would have wanted to brag about when the suspicion of dating first came out or something, but it was quiet. Perhaps he wasn’t that kind of reporter? Still, there are only a few reporters in the showbiz industry who write good articles.
“But, why cannot we date?”
“Are you having a thing<sup>5</sup>Korean use the term ?<em>sseom </em>or some. As in having “some” rtionships. Liking each other but not yet dating. The phase of knowing and getting close to each other. with someone?”
“<em>Eii</em>, I am just curious. It got cursed a lot…”
Park Seo Dam was surfing the web with Ian’s tablet. It seemed that he was monitoring the overheated fandom atmosphere next door.
“Cause fans don’t like it. Well, that’s one reason.”
“<em>Hyuung</em>…”
“Don’t look at it too much.”
Ian took away the tablet. The screen Park Seo Dam was looking at was a portal site column.
［Kim Ye Eun’s showbiz report] Seung Hoon?Hee Jin Finally You Are Dating Too.
As expected from members of the most popr idol groups. To think that you can date when you’re busy working. It is surprising that such diligent idols can exist.
“Seo Dam-<em>ah</em>, novels are not read in the news column. Your eyes will rot. I told you to entermunities that you enjoyed.”
“But I am still curious about the reactions.”
Reporters could not be left out of this major scandal. Biting Factfix’s bait, reporters wrote novels of someone meeting somewhere or who introduced them, giving fact-checking a damn, and sat down to watch.
To think that Kim Ye Eun’s article was the one that our <em>maknae</em> sees, believes, and singled out. Ian sat opposite Park Seo Dam.
“Still, I am scared that people who were fans get so angry like this.”
“Fans who turned around are the scariest. And by then, they’re not fans. Just badmenters.”
Ian sighed at the dubious face showing ‘Is that so?’.
“I heard something from my cousin <em>noona</em>.”
Just asking why doesn’t mean he is in a real rtionship. Park Seo Dam must be asking out of pure curiosity. Ian summoned his cousin <em>noona</em> again.
“First of all, some people have rtionship feelings for idols. You know this, right?
“Huh.”
“That’s how much why we also sell rtionships. Even at fan signings, they hold our hands, right?”
“But isn’t that done at the level of fan-love?”
“It’s indeed fan-love, but it’s not <em>real</em> love. We’re business, but there are a lot of fans who are really fluttered.”
That’s right. Park Seo Dam nodded. Kim Ju Young, who was trying to eat yogurt from the refrigerator, sat down silently next to Park Seo Dam. His face was full of interest.
“But if they get too immersed, they’ll end up being a <em>sasaeng</em> or a stalker. Usually, it’s just like ‘he is everyone’s idol, if I can’t have him, no one should’. Yet, someone took him. And she’s someone better and prettier at that. Understand?”
Park Seo Dam and Kim Ju Young nodded. Park Jin Hyuk, who came out of the bathroom in the meantime, sat next to Ian.
“And indirect satisfaction. I want you to do better because I buy a lot of albums, stream music, support, and managements for you. But you’re all happy dating behind my back while I work so hard for you? Pissing me off. It’s this kind of thinking. <em>Okie</em>?”
“Oh… I think I know, <em>Hyung</em>. Cousin <em>noona</em>, can’t we <em>scout</em> her to ourpany?”
“I think she can be a top instructor with this much understanding of fans’ psychology.”
Actually, it’s me though. Shall I run <em>two jobs</em>? Ian justughed because he couldn’t.
“And usually, the first person dating in the group is the most criticized.”
“But why are you suddenly talking about dating?”
“Seo Dam is curious.”
Kim Ju Young and Park Jin Hyuk simultaneously said at Ian’s answer.
““Are you having a thing?””
“Ah, I am not!”
“Then what’s it?”
“I was just curious because people said not to do it recklessly! I understood it roughly, but I do not know the details.”
Really? Kim Ju Young and Park Jin Hyuk gave suspicious eyes.
“I guess there’s something, seeing hime out strong.”
“This this. Shouldn’t we tell Joo Hyuk <em>Hyung</em> to pay attention?”
“I said I am not!”
There was a lot of yfulness in the way they spoke. It seems he’ll be teased for a month with this.
* * *
After the sweet vacation on New Year’s Day, they had a pictorial shoot schedule the next day.
The video of the mafia game with MyKit spread to the point that almost everyone active in the <emmunity</em> knew. It is said that it became an issue that the so-called <em>‘muggles’ </em>who do not do stanning also responded well.
So today’s shoot was a pictorial with the concept of mafia and police where they took pictures together and also had a joint interview with MyKit. It is scheduled to be published in February for an idol-rted magazine.
“Hey, it’s been a while.”
“<em>Ma brother</em>.”
“<em>Wassup</em>.”
MyKit had arrived at the site first. Showing that they were best friends, they held hands, pulled each other, and lightly bumped their shoulders so smooth like flowing water.
“You’re getting more and more handsome. Aren’t we all going to be squids?”
“From the moment we came to this site, your group is like Noryangjin Fish Market.”
“What about you guys who are always together?”
“We’re half-dried Dokdo squid.”<sup>6</sup>Squid is often used as the metaphor for an ugly face especially when there is someone much more handsome around.
MyKit’s Kim Cheol Min and Jo Tae Woong giggled and hadic talk to each other. The staff passing by went ‘pfft’ and burst intoughter.
“<em>Yeo</em>! Choi <em>ssi</em>!”
“<em>Aigo</em> Park <em>ssi</em>!” <sup>7</sup>That one famous greeting from Reply 1988 if I’m not mistaken. Additionally, this kind of calling only surname is usually used by middle-aged men who dobor like construction.
Ian hurriedly approached then bowed and shook hands to each other. It was MyKit’s Park Se On. He was also the same age as Ian.
“I saw Imjingak’s parrot. It’s dope, huh?”
Park Se On showed his thumb. He had poor pronunciation besides a naturally low voice, but he said that his original ent was mumbled.
“What’s Imjingak’s parrot?”
“What, you haven’t seen it?”
“Factfix came out today. They took over everything.”
Ian didn’t even see it. Awy fell asleep as if dead after the year-end stage, and everyone was talking about the scandal when they woke up.
“Oh my, you didn’t watch that? There was a riot at dawn.”
Just in time, a staff holding a tablet nearby approached Ian. MyKit went in to change costumes.
It was a joint pictorial in name, but each group takes photos by themselves and takes only a few overall photos. Fans like to put together groups, but they don’t really like to mix them.
“See the fancam yourself.”
The members gathered next to Ian watched a shaking fancam because it couldn’t even hold the focus properly.
(Kyaaaaak!)
A scream in a nasal voice, whether she has a cold or her original voice. Ian closed his mouth tightly. If heughed here, it was like mocking the fan who cheered him on.
(Argh so handsoomekh! Thugh! Ough! Ian-aakh! Seo Dam-akh!)
In the end, the try not tough challenge failed. When someone eventually burst, everyoneughed.
(Gaiis it’s coold! Colddd! Akh! Choi Ian handsoomekh!)<sup>8</sup>It’s a bit weird, in Korean all these words end in ‘ah’ so it’s like ‘-aaakh’.
There was also a voice that was unknown whether she felt cold or worried about Awy. It was even funnier because someone put subtitles on the uploaded video written in red calligraphy font<sup>9</sup>Actually a font called <em>gungseo </em>that showed how serious something is and is often used in Korean memes. and even added a shaking effect.
They almost rolled over inughter on the scene where Ian grabbed the mic. Seeing that she became a bot and scream ‘so cool’ over and over again, it seems that she was called a parrot here.
“Woah such an awesome passion.”
“Aren’t we supposed to give something to this person, <em>Hyung</em>s?”
Although Factfix took over in the morning, this video is said to have heated the dawn. The members who eventuallyughed out loud discussed whether to upload a fan cafe post looking for this person.
“Ah, Iughed after a long time.”
“What do you mean after a long time, we alwaysugh.”
“Ah, that’s what I’m saying.”
Carefully giving back the tablet pad to the staff, Ian ordered Jin.
‘Don’t forget to let me know when you saw that fan.’
［Got it.]
Jin became noticeably more docile after he had gone somewhere.
Come to think of it, who is the one that Jin referred to as MyKit’s wasted member? All five of them were hard enough. Will it changeter?
Ian left his doubts behind and went in to change his costume.<hr>