Chapter 243
Chapter 243. Why Are You Coming Out From There? (1)
To be honest, Yoon Jaehee had a very slight expectation.
‘Could the guest for the Utopia concert possibly be the Kairos kids?’
Endaway, being from the same agency, had already appeared as guests several times (I knew this because I briefly dipped my toes in), and Miro is a place that emphasizes ‘We are one family,’ so the possibility was objectively high.
However, the reason I couldn’t directly bring it up in front of my friend, who was an Idea, was because this could be a rather delicate issue depending on the situation.
‘There were already quite a few people who subtly disliked the fact that we won 1st place last time and even did the encore on their behalf… To be honest, being a guest is a hit or miss.’
This wasn’t so much a problem with the people as it was with the position.
Being a guest at a Utopia concert wasn’t a spot just anyone could stand on.
When Utopia held a three-day concert, they invited different singers as guests for all three days, and that lineup was famous for being incredibly glamorous and impressive.
The Ideas even went so far as to nickname it ‘Bonus Time,’ updating the
‘Even if I take off my rose-colored glasses, our kids are good, but… To be honest, if it weren’t for the fact that we’re from the same agency, we wouldn’t even have a chance to get in…’
We’d already used up our direct junior status card with Endaway.
Yoon Jaehee thought it might be better to have a scandal about sitting in a prime spot in the second floor with a free pass, not watching the performance, and just staring at her phone, rather than being compared to the other guests on another day and getting criticized.
After all, there was no way our kids wouldn’t properly watch their seniors’ performance.
‘But still, if, by any chance, they do get to be guests…’
Considering the slight possibility, Yoon Jaehee hastily clasped her hands together. Then she sincerely prayed, thinking of all the holy beings she knew in the world.
‘Please, if our kids get to be the guests, let it be on the last day… The last concert, the very last one, please.’
There’s nothing more despairing than being a fan unable to attend on the same day, same place, different date, please.
The hands she clasped together had never been so desperate.
* * *
The Utopia concert lasted three days.
Among them, Yoon Jaehee and her friend got seats in the middle row on the floor on the last day.
It was surprising enough to get the floor on the last concert, but to get seats together?
Yoon Jaehee couldn’t hide her astonishment as she checked the tickets she received through an online app.
“Did you seriously get these yourself? Without using a macro or a proxy?”
“I was amazed after I got them too. My queue number was 7.”
“I thought queue numbers with a single digit didn’t actually exist… I thought it automatically started from the thousands.”
“Thousands? I’ve even seen ten thousand when I was getting tickets for my mom for Shintae-pal’s concert.”
“Ah, Shintae-pal, that’s insane… Is your mom okay?”
“We’ve banned Shin Ramyeon at home. My mom starts cursing Shintae-pal just by seeing the word ‘Shin’…”
Recalling her friend’s mother’s former favorite singer, who was quite popular as a trot singer until one day he reached a grand slam of scandals on the news and disappeared into prison, Yoon Jaehee nodded in sympathy. There were no worse people than those who made you embarrassed to have ever been their fan.
“Wow, these seats are even closer than I thought? The view is amazing.”
Yoon Jaehee said as she looked around the concert hall.
The stage was impressive, with an enormous LED screen and a protruding stage that spanned the audience seats. The stage set looked meticulously built.
“I’m so jealous. When will our kids ever hold a concert in a place like this?”
“They’re still babies who debuted less than a year ago. What concert?”
“Yeah, they’ve got a long way to go, a long way to go. How did I end up stanning these newborn babies…”
The Utopia concert had seats even on the floor, which was not completely standing.
It was such a famous concert for making people jump up and down, so even though there were seats, the spacing between them was generous. On every seat, there were event banners prepared by the official fan cafe and gift sets prepared by Utopia.
After pondering for a moment, Yoon Jaehee took out only the snack bundle from inside and handed the gift set, which contained member photocards, handwritten letters, and a luxury chocolate exchange coupon, to her friend.
“If you have someone to give this to, take it. I’ll just eat the snacks today in case they spoil.”
“Really? You can just keep it.”
“No, it’s something they prepared for Ideas, so what’s the point in me keeping it?”
“Then I’ll give it to the friend who was originally supposed to come to the concert with me. Thanks. Oh, do you want one of the banners?”
“Yeah, give me one. I’ll wave it when our kids come out later.”
While chatting away in their seats, people began to fill up the seats around them in no time.
The sight of the spacious concert hall being packed with Utopia’s lightsticks in an instant was truly breathtaking. It made sense why idols always say they’ll never forget this sight as they tear up.
Soon, a countdown announcing the start of the concert appeared on the large screen.
“It’s starting, it’s starting.”
The orchestral version of Utopia’s debut song
One by one, the lights on the previously dark stage turned on in sync with the music.
As the countdown reached 0, the lights spun around, and the central LED opened like castle gates amid thunderous cheers. As Utopia’s members, dressed in military-inspired outfits, emerged onto the main stage under the spotlight, the cheers grew even louder.
“Can’t you see it?”
Cheong Hansol, the main vocalist, and the fourth member whom Seo Taeil adored, pierced through the loud cheers with his solid and robust vocals, hitting the audience with their force. As if on cue, fireworks exploded with a bang, and when the MR of
“Idea, are you ready!?”
With Nam Daun’s shout, Utopia’s concert hype man, the lightsticks, which sparkled like stars, shook without rest. Seo Taeil, wearing leather gloves, took the center stage as Utopia’s 12th-anniversary encore concert’s final day began.
* * *
The first part of the concert passed in the blink of an eye.
Starting with their debut song
“Wow, Utopia is amazing, seriously… Legends are legends for a reason…”
“Insane, insane, insane, ah, seriously insane…!”
Her friend was already out of her mind.
Unable to contain her excitement, she grabbed Yoon Jaehee’s hands and shook them, and Yoon Jaehee could understand how she felt.
“Is it the guest now?”
“Yeah. Bonus Time. There were no leaks this time. The lineup is amazing.”
The first concert featured a rapper who had won a hip-hop survival show with a song produced by Yoon Jinu, and yesterday’s middle concert had Sarin, who recently announced a comeback with a full-length album. Both had huge hit songs that the public knew well, so reviews were pouring in about how they enjoyed a mass sing-along, almost like a college festival.
“Hey, do you think your kids are really coming?”
“No way… Taehyun did a live broadcast yesterday and didn’t seem like he was up to anything… But then again, that’s Taehyun… Could it be because Haru wasn’t around…?”
As Yoon Jaehee lamented that the spoiler-spilling machine Dan Haru wasn’t there, a video announcing the guest time began to play on the screens.
Accompanied by a playful BGM, the video showed Utopia members giving clues about today’s guest. The first to speak was, of course, Seo Taeil.
you trying to make this boring!?>
When Seo Taeil mentioned the son and uncle, the Ideas immediately caught on to the identity of the guest.
Fortunately, the audience responded with cheers of excitement. Yoon Jaehee, who had been worried about them taking the guest spot, also grabbed her friend’s hand and shook it wildly the moment she realized it was indeed Kairos.
“Insane! Insane…! It’s really Kairos!”
“Yoon Jaehee, you owe me a meal. You hit the jackpot thanks to me.”
While the video continued to play, Yoon Jaehee’s heart raced like it was going to burst.
Since the final stage, they had been so busy that they couldn’t even attend music shows, do events, or hold fan meetings…!
To think that I’d get to see our kids’ stage at a concert I came to with a friend…!
Although she was worried about the aftermath that would follow this guest stage, for now, the fact that she could see her kids’ stage with her own eyes was more important.
Yoon Jaehee hastily checked her phone’s battery, turned on the camera, and adjusted the settings. It was then that she overheard the people behind her chatting.
“What? Who? Who did they say?”
“Kairos. Those kids who debuted from Miro this time.”
“Ah… I don’t know any of their songs.”
“Their debut song was written and composed by Taeil. The song’s pretty good, worth listening to.”
“Well, I mean… Hmm…”
It was clear that they were disappointed, but Yoon Jaehee could understand that reaction too.
Most of the Ideas cheered and clapped in anticipation, but many of them also began looking at their phones, seemingly planning to take it easy during this time.
‘No, but our kids are good on stage, so once they start performing, there will be people who enjoy it.’
Encouraging herself with that thought, Yoon Jaehee looked at the stage with her friend.
After a brief video introducing Kairos, their profile photos appeared on the screen, followed by the playback of their debut song. Yoon Jaehee quietly recited the official fanchant to herself and clapped with all her might for Kairos as they appeared on stage.
“Hey, your kids look so good today.”
Yoon Jaehee covered her mouth and stared at her ultimate bias, Hajin, who had just stepped onto the stage.
His naturally black hair was almost unstyled, and his cheeks were streaked with yellow and blue paint, like face paint. His overall outfit was the same varsity group outfit they had already worn on a music show once, but Hajin was wearing a white baseball cap backward, a white short-sleeve shirt, and ripped jeans.
As soon as she saw the black Converse shoes that reached his ankles, the first line of the fanfic
“Idea sunbaenim, hello! We will introduce ourselves. Two, three!”
“KICK US OFF! Hello, we are Kairos! Please take care of us!”
With Hajin’s lead, the members bowed at a perfect 90-degree angle.
The boldness of these rookie idols, calling them sunbaenim right from the start, made some Ideas laugh. Despite the earlier lack of interest, when the camera occasionally caught a glimpse of Siwoo or Eunchan on the screen, comments like ‘Who are those guys, and why are they so handsome?’ could be heard.
As Jaehee secretly swelled with pride, on stage, Hajin grabbed the microphone and began his speech.
“We’re really nervous and honored to be on this stage as the final guest during the Bonus Time at Utopia sunbaenims’ concert. I heard that some of the sunbaenims’ family members are also here today.”
The Ideas murmured in confusion as Hajin suddenly mentioned the members’ families. But Hajin, as if ignoring them, turned his body towards the section where Taeil had told him the members’ families were seated.
“As the unofficial grandson, I’d like to officially greet you today.”
Then, without hesitation, he gave a deep bow towards the audience…!
“There goes our Hajin, doing something crazy again…”
Yoon Jaehee couldn’t help but lower her head in embarrassment for some reason.