Chapter 98

"Can you make it a bit easier?"

"Yes, I think it would be better if you could use less force. It’s a scene that should be inserted calmly…."

The production staff, who had been observing the practice scene, made such a request. It seemed they thought it was a bit too intense.

I was taken aback.

I had done it naturally, as I usually do.

Still, I said I understood, even though I wasn’t quite sure what using less force meant.

"By the way…"

The assistant director asked.

"Do you usually practice like this?"

"Yes. I was told to do it naturally, so I did it as I always do."

"…You really go all out. It’s just like when we filmed the B-boy crew practice scenes in the past."

I smiled at him, who seemed impressed.

"Probably all rookie idols are similar to us."

It’s usually during the rookie period that idols get the most practice.

Their schedules are relatively lighter, and the sense of urgency to stand out is strong.

We weren’t special.

Just hearing the stories of the seniors who debuted at TJ, I knew they practiced for at least twelve hours a day.

I felt a bit embarrassed seeing the production staff’s surprised reactions.

After all, everyone goes through this to debut.

I smiled awkwardly and returned to the others.

"What is it?"

Ryuhyeok asked me.

"Try to use less force?"

"No, they want us to use less force."

"Less force?"

Jung-hyun blinked and asked.

"How do you use less force…? Like this?"

"Hey, that’s too much. Jung-hyun."

We laughed among ourselves as he flailed his limbs like an octopus.

On the other hand, despite being taken aback by the request to use less force, we quickly delivered the scene the production staff wanted.

When we did it more casually, they were pleased.

With the production staff satisfied, we moved to the next location.

Now it was time to record.

We decided to shoot a few scenes in the second-floor studio due to the discussions between our company and PBS.

I don’t know what kind of deal they made, but as a result, our song would briefly appear in the PBS documentary.

It would probably be a passing shot with the melody and lyrics, saying something like, "He is also active as a singer."

The assistant director asked, impressed.

"Mr. Seo, are you going to release this soon?"

"Yes, it was originally a demo song composed by Woo-ju, but we plan to polish it and re-release it. We also have a promotion plan in place."

"By the way, the title is…?"

"Oh, it’s ‘Night Sea.’"

Manager Yoon Seok-hwan smiled. He seemed to understand what the production staff was thinking and asked again.

"Doesn’t the song sound good?"

They nodded silently.

* * *

Meanwhile, while Seo Woo-ju and Ryuhyeok were recording ‘Night Sea’ as a duet, the other members were called to the company’s meeting room for an interview about Seo Woo-ju.

"What kind of person is Seo Woo-ju, or rather, Seo Woo-ju?"

The three members reacted differently to the question.

Kim Biju asked for time to think, Kim Jung-hyun spoke without hesitation, and Wang Ji-ho checked the angles before answering.

Their answers were as varied as their reactions.

However, by the end, their conclusions were in line.

The production staff wondered if they had rehearsed their answers.

"Seo Woo-ju?"

And finally, Ryuhyeok, who came in last, also gave a short thought before answering.

His answer was the same as the others.

* * *

As the recording for the special Chuseok episode of ‘Jusehan’ approached, we were busier than ever.

We also experienced a different kind of reaction.

"…Oh, t-that… Jusehan! Right?"

"Wow, you’re really different from what I see on TV."

"Can you sign for me?"

People who recognized us at rest stops and on the streets increased.

And they weren’t our idol fans.

Strangely, when we were scattered, people would just tilt their heads and say, "…Hmm?" But when we were all together, people would recognize us.

It was quite surprising.

From the time we did the ‘Something’ activities until now, non-idol fans rarely recognized us.

Clearly, the power of variety shows was immense.

Even people who didn’t care about idols were recognizing us.

Of course, most of these few people only knew us as, "Oh, Jusehan!" or "Oh… that basketball!"

I almost felt like I should say, "Hello, we’re the rookie boy group Jusehan."

On the other hand, despite the increased public recognition, there was no significant change in the fandom.

The number of fan cafe members remained the same, and our Suples were excited about the Jusehan Chuseok special and reality show teasers, showing typical reactions.

This opportunity made us realize something.

Variety shows are great for raising public awareness, but our main job is still related to our fans.

And our recent main job, which we are putting all our efforts into, is promoting the song.

-[EntertainmentIN] NewBlack Interview: "Surprised and grateful for the attention from the show…"

-NewBlack’s ‘Night Sea’ MV to be released before the official audio

-[Exclusive] The story behind the name of a fandom called Suples

After the company released promotional materials, articles started appearing everywhere, with hundreds of them from major media outlets.

The official audio for ‘Night Sea.’

Initially, we only planned to do a simple promotion, but the management department changed the strategy after Jusehan’s appearance.

Since the water was flowing, they decided to stir it a bit.

So, we did everything we could.

We did interviews with reporters like Mr. Oh from EntertainmentIN, who were friendly to us, and appeared on various radio shows to promote the song.

Unfortunately, there were no variety shows.

We received offers from various places, but we couldn’t accept them because of Jusehan’s side.

We had promised to use certain materials in the special, so it would be problematic to use them first on other shows.

Anyway, after completing all the promotions, we were currently in the car heading back to Seoul, looking at a tablet.

"Ah, I’m so nervous. So nervous."

The youngest member was making a fuss.

"Why are you so nervous when you didn’t even sing? Why? Why is that, hyung? Why am I so nervous?"

"Because you’re blocking all the air conditioning vents with your body?"

"…Oh, you’re quick to notice things."

When Ji-ho moved, the vents that had been blocked started blowing cool air at us.

Biju adjusted the vents to distribute the air evenly.

"I’m nervous too, hyung. We all went out to promote this time, right?"

"That’s right."

Jung-hyun, fidgeting with a jelly, said.

"I’m nervous too."

"Don’t lie."

"Actually, I’m not nervous, but I thought I should say it."

I laughed at his calm response.

Meanwhile, our main vocalist, who had been silent, kept refreshing the tablet screen.

"Get a grip, Ryuhyeok. Just wait a bit."

"I’m just anxious."

Then he asked Seok-hwan hyung, who was sitting in the passenger seat.

"Manager, when will our MV be released?"

"Wait and see. It will be up 10 minutes before the hour."

"Right, wait and see. I’m trying to be calm too…."

"What’s calm about you? I heard you talking in your sleep last night. Do…!"

I covered Ryuhyeok’s mouth with my hand.

He tried to bite me like an alligator, and the others laughed at the struggle.

While Biju mediated, Jung-hyun asked, seemingly remembering something.

"Ah, right. What did Grandma say? Does she know our song is coming out tonight?"

"No, I need to tell her now."

I hadn’t called her much these days.

No, every time I called, she kept questioning, "Hey, when did you start exercising so well?"

I tried to dodge her questions, but she was too persistent.

Especially since she had the superpower of catching me in lies every time.

How ineffective my lies were….

I almost wanted to change her name in my phone to Super Villain Kim Deok-soon.

Well, I’ll have to call her after the song comes out.

"How are the fans reacting?"

Jung-hyun asked, looking at his phone.

"Everyone is looking forward to it. We’ve been promoting it during our live broadcasts, so the anticipation is high…?"

"Since you mentioned it, should we turn on the live broadcast?"

"Not now. Let’s turn it on after the audio is released and we greet everyone."

I said, looking around at the members.

"Remember what happened after we posted the school uniform photos?"

"Oh, right."

It was from the second live broadcast when we took graduation photos.

Our Suples wrote promotional posts on idol communities, but the reactions were mixed.

-Is it okay to take photos without permission at someone else’s school?

-It seems they didn’t get permission.

-Is it just me who feels uncomfortable?

-If I were a student at that school, it would be a bit awkward… Even though it’s outside the school, it’s still outsiders taking personal photos.

When one person commented that they felt uncomfortable, a few others quickly followed.

Although our Suples eventually deleted the posts, the majority of the reactions were not positive.

We were, of course, surprised, and so was the company.

We had carefully considered the live broadcast, but we didn’t expect such a reaction.

So, we decided to reduce the frequency of live broadcasts and be more cautious.

Especially now, as our names were gradually becoming known.

"Ah, only one minute left!"

We gathered in front of the tablet and trembled.

Soon, we started the countdown and refreshed the company’s YouTube main page.

6:50 PM.

A fresh video titled [WooJoo & LeeHyuk - Night Sea MV WooJoo&LeeHyuk - Night Sea Special MV] appeared.

With eyes full of tension and excitement, Ryuhyeok clicked the video.

But what came up wasn’t what we expected.

"Damn, what is this? I was scared."

It was an ad that played before the video started.

I said, feeling anxious.

"Quick, press the skip button… huh?"

But 5 seconds later, as we were about to skip, we blinked in surprise.

We couldn’t help it.

An unexpected scene was playing.

-I am an ordinary college student.

The narration began as a handsome man stood in a swaying subway, holding the handrail and looking at his phone.

The screen was bright and clear.

The ad was staged like a scene from a movie.

However, the actor inside, wearing a campus look and glasses, was someone we all knew.

"…Is that me?"

Thanks to the youngest member’s face on the screen, we immediately understood the situation.

It was the ad we had filmed.

The SNS CF for the school uniform brand Everdream, the ‘Magic School’ edition.