Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 24

Seo Eun-hye turned on the television and connected it to YouTube.

She entered the channel [JUN] with the ID and password that Seo Eun-chan had given her.

He had been uploading the edited videos for her.

The video appeared on the screen.

Lee Min-jun, who had been playing with Seo-jun, picked him up and sat on the sofa.

Seo-jun was holding his bottle tightly. Sip, sip.

“This is the last episode.”

“I know. You can tell how much fun Seo-jun had.”

It was already the last episode of the video series that had started in early December.

She had watched the videos that Seo Eun-chan had sent her whenever she had time, but it was different to watch the edited version with subtitles.

A month had passed and Seo-jun was nine months old.

“Seo-jun is cuter and stronger at nine months.”

“We’re used to being his parents now. When we first heard him, we thought our hearts would break.”

It felt like yesterday when Seo-jun opened his mouth and said ‘mom’ and ‘dad’ while looking at the Christmas tree.

The moment when he first called them mom and dad was clearly captured by the camera that Seo Eun-chan had left behind.

Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun had saved the video on their laptop, three external hard drives, and the cloud.

The Christmas tree that Seo-jun and Brown Black had decorated was still in the living room, even after Christmas was over.

“Shall we watch it now?”

Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun watched the last episode on the television.

Seo-jun, who was sitting on his dad’s lap, handed him the empty bottle and looked at his two palms. His hands had grown a little bit in a month.

The baton symbol on his right palm had faded slightly, while the baton symbol on his left palm had become a bit darker.

As Seo-jun grew older, the [Orchestra Conductor’s Link] symbol would remain only on his left palm.

‘I can give my left palm to my hyungs, right?’

The couple had become quite close with Brown Black, who would contact them during their practice breaks.

They felt like their younger siblings now.

Seo-jun giggled.

[Let’s send a video letter to Jun for the last time!]

The subtitle appeared and the couple’s eyes moved to a frame on the cabinet. There was a letter and a signed poster from Brown Black.

They said they would become famous idols, and the second signature was for Seo-jun. It was from Hwang Ye-jun.

“If Seo-jun’s signature is the second one, what’s the first one?”

“It didn’t show up in the video.”

It was probably the man who had asked for their autograph at the playground. Come to think of it, the video of the playground and the video of them singing a lullaby at night hadn’t appeared either.

‘Well, uncle will take care of it.’

Seo-jun looked at the screen.

He saw his hyungs sending him a video letter with their faces flushed.

He knew what the letter said because his dad had read it to him, but it was better to hear it from his hyungs themselves.

The last episode ended and Seo Eun-hye turned off the television.

She picked up her phone and checked the views.

Hmm. She sighed.

“People who watch from the first episode seem to watch all the way…”

“There aren’t many viewers.”

“Eun-chan said he was very satisfied with this much…”

Lee Min-jun also lifted his head and looked at the phone screen.

He couldn’t help but compare it to the channel [JUN] that he was running. He had gotten used to having over five million subscribers.

-That’s because it’s Seo-jun’s channel! This is amazing enough! They haven’t even debuted yet. They don’t have a fan cafe. If half of the views become fans, it’s a hit!

Seo Eun-hye’s words mixed with regret made Seo Eun-chan, who was on the phone, pound his chest in frustration.

****

Hello. We are Brown Black.

…

We hope you enjoyed [48 Hours with Brown Black and Jun].

Tomorrow at 6 p.m. We will have our debut stage on WNET’s The Music Show.

If you have time, please watch our debut stage of Brown Black.

…

We want to be idols who touch your hearts.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely, brown Black.

***

The day dawned. It was the debut day of Brown Black.

Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun sat on the sofa. Seo-jun also sat on his dad’s lap with an oak doll in his arms.

“They’re finally debuting.”

“Seo-jun, in a little while, your hyungs will sing on TV.”

“Ing-ah?”

He seemed to speak quite well now.

“Yes. hyungs.”

“Ing-ah. Eo-ong-ong!”

Seo-jun hit his phone. Hyungs, I miss you! Seo Eun-hye noticed his gesture and sent a message to Seo Eun-chan.

A message came back without a second of waiting.

-Seo-jun misses them. Can you talk?

[Good! They’re so nervous they’re not themselves!

Seo Eun-chan called.

“Seo-jun. It’s your hyungs.”

“Ing-ah!”

-Seo-jun!

-Wait a minute! Don’t push!

-Hwang Ye-jun! Calm down!

-Eu-heong. Seo-jun!

The screen was full of Brown Black’s faces.

Their faces were hidden by the colorful makeup, but their expressions were not good.

They bit their lips nervously and anxiously. Seo-jun tilted his head.

The conductor’s affinity was fine. It was high for being apart, but…

‘Connector’s affinity. Why is it like that?’

The high number seemed like a lie and dropped to 20. Seo-jun was flustered.

“Ing-ah? Ee-eeng?”

-Seo-jun. Can we do well?

Among the noisy words of Brown Black, only one word was heard.

At that word, seo Eun-chan, who was holding the phone, and the couple and Seo-jun stopped their actions.

Brown Black, who had been distracted, became quiet.

Yeah. Can we do well? The others will do well. But me. Me? I had no faith in myself. That faith affected the affinity.

Seeing the gloomy look of Brown Black, seo-jun clenched his fist. And he lifted it to the sky.

“Hi-ing!”

‘Fighting!’

What if the ‘connector’s affinity’ is low? Just raise the ‘conductor’s affinity’. I’ve never used it like this before, so I don’t know if it will go up, but cheer up!

Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun quickly raised their arms, flashing the V sign, as they saw Seo-jun cheering for them.

“Look at him. Seo-jun is rooting for you! Cheer up. You can do it!”

“You’ve practiced hard and recorded a new version!”

-Yeah. You guys have been practicing day and night! You’ve improved your skills a lot while filming with Seo-jun!

Seo-jun kept shouting “Fighting!” He waved his arms and bounced around.

-Hahaha.

Hwang Ye-jun’s stiff face relaxed. His laughter was followed by the other members.

That little baby, that clueless baby, was sending them his support.

-Seo-jun is cheering for us like this!

-We can’t just give up like this.

-Watch TV!

-Seo-jun, thank you!

“Kyahaha!”

Seo-jun’s eyes showed a slight increase in the ‘bonding connection’. He was relieved. He sighed and then laughed heartily.

After the video call ended, seo Eun-chan sent a message.

-Thank you. The kids are feeling better!

[Hang in there with Seo-jun! Cheer up!

Seo Eun-hye put down her phone and looked at the TV where an advertisement was playing.

The channel was WNET. She opened her mouth with a deep sigh.

“…Should we tell them we’re going to America today?”

“Um. We agreed to have dinner tonight, so let’s tell them then.”

Lee Min-jun patted Seo-jun’s belly and said.

***

Thursday, the last week of December.

WNET Broadcasting Station was in the middle of rehearsal.

Lee Sang-cheon, the PD of The Music Show, was watching the monitor screen of the rookie idol group singing on stage.

“The song is good, but they look nervous as the first group of the new entertainment company.”

His junior, Kim Min-hyuk, handed him a cup of coffee and said.

“He’s over there, right?”

“Yeah.”

Lee Sang-cheon shrugged his shoulders and took the cup.

Kim Min-hyuk was good at making coffee, so Lee Sang-cheon PD liked him quite a bit.

In a place where coffee was consumed like air, being good at making coffee was a minor but very good advantage.

Kim Min-hyuk himself knew that his coffee-making skills were top-notch, and he diligently served the upper people.

“A rich kid doing this kind of thing.”

“Well, there are quite a few sons and daughters of wealthy people, right?”

“But they usually become actors or something. Or join a big agency.”

The rookie idol group that had gone up on stage came down with their shoulders slumped. Lee Sang-cheon PD’s eyes followed their backs.

“If he’s the youngest son of King’s Market, he could just play for the rest of his life, you know.”

King’s Market.

It was one of the top three Korean markets that operated in various places in the US, centered on LA’s Koreatown.

It was a very large market that had not only Korean food ingredients, but also food ingredients from various Asian countries, and many people liked to visit it.

Lately, there were rumors that it might overtake the other markets and take the lead with its aggressive operation.

“It must be fierce there too.”

Kim Min-hyuk spoke up after hearing what PD Lee Sang-cheon said.

“Why did you give them the empty slot? Even if they had a cancellation, you still had a month left. You could have put anyone famous for their special stages. Unless, senior…”

Kim Min-hyuk made a circle with his thumb and index finger. Lee Sang-cheon hit him on the back of his head. Ouch!

“Senior! I was joking! Joking!”

That really hurt! Kim Min-hyuk rubbed the back of his head.

“We’re going to do more music shows overseas from next year, right?”

“Yes. What was it, global hallyu? The higher-ups think they can do anything they want. How much do foreigners know about Korean idol groups…”

“So we need to gather more of an audience where there are a lot of Koreans. Like LA or something…”

Kim Min-hyuk exclaimed.

“LA means King’s Market!”

“Yeah. This is a good opportunity to give them a stage that had a cancellation and create a good image. If it goes well, they might become sponsors. And even if they don’t, well, it doesn’t matter.”

“Then you don’t have to greet them? Don’t you have to at least shake hands and see their faces, so they can say, ‘Oh, this PD is the one who gave me a chance’?”

Kim Min-hyuk shrank under Lee Sang-cheon’s gaze.

“You’re the only one who can express how pathetic you are with your whole body.”

“How long have you been here…”

“Yes, yes. I’m sorry.”

-It’s blinding!

One of the singers who came up one by one shouted into the microphone.

The music stopped and the lights dimmed.

Kim Min-hyuk and Lee Sang-cheon looked at the monitor screen.

They saw the face of the owner of the voice. Kim Min-hyuk sighed deeply, and Lee Sang-cheon rubbed his forehead.

It was the leader of West Wing, a five-year-old boy group.

Yeah, he wondered why he was so quiet.

“Ah, that jerk again…”

“Watch your mouth.”

“Yes, yes.”

Lee Sang-cheon gave instructions through the microphone and the lights came back on.

The rehearsal started again.

West Wing moved half-heartedly and finished the rehearsal and went down.

Kim Min-hyuk, who was watching the screen with a displeased eye, gulped down the remaining coffee and lifted his head.

“Ah, where were we?”

“Not greeting them?”

“Yes. Why don’t you?”

A man and a woman came up on the next stage.

They were a unit made up of one member from a boy group and one member from a girl group, with a couple concept.

As soon as the meeting to make this unit was held, rumors started that they were dating.

The two people and their agencies denied it, but after that, the relationship between the two groups’ fans got worse and it didn’t even become a topic of conversation.

“The entertainment industry is a place where rumors of dating and marriage fly around. If they brush shoulders, they’re on bad terms, they’re enemies. If they’re a little cold, they’re ostracized.”

Lee Sang-cheon crumpled up the paper cup.

“But go to the waiting room of the kids who haven’t even debuted and say, ‘I’m the PD here’. How do you think that will go?”

“Ah…”

“They’ll usually think you gave them money.”

Lee Sang-cheon swallowed the remaining coffee.

“Then their image will be bad and mine will be bad too. They just have to think that the More Music Show PD gave them a stage.”

“Then it’s good for the new PD if you go somewhere else, right?”

“They must know the PD’s name by now.”

But Brown Black had no mind to think about the PD’s name.

Six groups were crammed together in a large waiting room.

Four of them were sitting in a corner, holding their phones in their hands.

Seo Eun-chan spoke quietly.

“Guys, snap out of it.”

They were staring at their phones. Kevin’s phone had rap lyrics, choi Si-yoon’s phone had a dance video, Park Seo-jin and Hwang Ye-jun were listening to songs with earphones.

They had all made mistakes on the rehearsal stage and were out of their minds.

Seo Eun-chan sighed at their murmuring in fear.

He had been talking to them for a while, but there was no answer.

Did they even hear his voice?

Their eyes were red.

They didn’t cry because he told them not to ruin their makeup, but they were holding back a lot.

Seo Eun-chan’s phone rang as he was about to sigh again.

It was a lifesaver!