The Idol Training Simulation I Messed Up

Chapter 24

Since the dance team and our group each had different objectives, we didn’t share all of our schedules together.

Having slept so much on the plane, jet lag was the least of our concerns; our minds were clear, and we enjoyed the free time given to us.

“What’s that written over there? Can you read it for me?”

“It’s just the alphabet!”

“I thought Jun-hae would know some hidden meaning behind it.”

“There are good translation apps these days, why don’t you use one of those?”

“Come on. A student from Dan-gun University is more trustworthy than an app.”

Hearing the name of the university mentioned in the members’ conversation, I turned around and asked.

“Does Jun-hae go to Dan-gun University?”

I didn’t even know about the members’ academic backgrounds… Dan-gun University was a prestigious institution located in Seoul.

“Yes, Jun-hae is really good at studying.”

“Smart guy.”

The members wore proud expressions, as if they were boasting about their younger brother.

As Woohyung patted Jun-hae’s head, the other two members also reached out and started patting him together.

Standing in the middle, Jun-hae had a resigned expression, as if he found it too bothersome to stop them.

‘He must have been a trainee since high school.’

Since Jun-hae debuted with Monochrome at 18, he must have entered university afterward.

Considering the time he spent as a trainee, there must have been even less time to study.

I hadn’t known, but he clearly wasn’t your average student.

“I’m not even an English major, so stop asking me.”

“But you’re the one who took the college entrance exam most recently. This hyung hasn’t touched English for years.”

“Entrance exam or not, I’m in my final year now! It’s been years since I took that exam.”

“Is Jun-hae already in his final year? Our boy has grown up so much.”

No matter what Jun-hae said, it was all lost in the “our baby” talk about the youngest.

The playful scene with Jun-hae at the center continued even when we went to the restaurant.

With the staff and members seated at separate tables, we could naturally hear their conversation.

“I’ll have mine medium rare. Make sure the soup isn’t too hot, put lots of milk in the shake, and only 80% ice. Could you ask how much cheese is on the fries?”

“Ah, just eat it as it is.”

“How can you tell me to just eat it!”

On this business trip, a global business department employee, responsible for English communication, accompanied us.

Since we were at the next table, they could have placed the order together, but Han-yi specifically asked Jun-hae to place the order, listing out his detailed requests.

Although Jun-hae looked annoyed, he still politely gathered the members’ orders and conveyed them to the restaurant staff, albeit with a bit of hesitation.

Whether intentional or not, only about half of Han-yi’s requests were conveyed.

As the members gathered around a table, they captured their natural moments with a small camcorder.

I’m not sure if this video could be released, considering Jae Min is missing from it.

If a video of only four members were uploaded without any context, the fans would surely get anxious.

‘Should I explain that Jae Min is participating in a dance competition if we upload this?’

Since Jae Min was participating not as a member of Monochrome but as part of Team Miro, Newma couldn’t decide on his behalf.

Well… if it comes to it, I’ll discuss it with him later.

While my thoughts were occupied with work-related matters, the members seemed excited among themselves.

Judging by how familiar their teasing looked, it seemed like this was a common daily occurrence.

They got along like real brothers, probably because of the years they spent together.

After finishing our meal, we went for a stroll, walking through the wide shopping street.

“Hahaha! Hyung, do you think you can pull off this shirt with your face?”

Laughing, Han-yi tugged Haerang aside as he discovered something while walking.

He then held a shirt, with a large animal face printed on it, up to Haerang’s face.

“…Why does this actually suit me?”

“What are you trying to say?”

“No, it makes the shirt look good when I see it like this.”

With a disappointed look, Han-yi quietly put the shirt down.

Even to my eyes, it was an outfit not everyone could pull off. Maybe it’s true that fashion is all about the face.

Watching them, I found myself drawn to the clothes in the stores, which I had only been glancing at as I enjoyed the scenery.

‘It’s fun to imagine who would wear what!’

As I carefully browsed the shops, a piece of clothing caught my eye.

“This would suit Han-yi well.”

When I pointed at him, he approached with a wary look, wondering if I was joking about another weird outfit like earlier.

However, when he saw that it was a decent piece of clothing that really would look good on him, he showed interest with an “Oh~.”

“Do you want to try it on? I’ll buy it for you.”

“You’ll buy it for me?”

Of course. I’m the CEO’s daughter.

Instead of answering, I simply smiled and pulled the shirt off the hanger.

What I picked out was a denim shirt in a generous size, perfect for layering over a t-shirt.

Han-yi, who had put the shirt on at my request, looked as good in it as I had imagined. The perfect look of an ideal college senior who doesn’t exist in reality.

‘Yeah. I like it. I’ll pay for it.’

And that was just the beginning.

“This one is exactly Jun-hae’s style. I think this would look good on Haerang. This one suits Woohyung’s vibe. I wish Jae Min was here to try this on. Should I just buy it anyway?”

I led the members around, fully indulging in shopping.

The members, who were initially bewildered by my unexpected gift of clothes, soon got into the spirit and reacted excitedly as they browsed with me.

“I’ve never tried this style before.”

“Oh, but it looks really good on you, hyung.”

How do you like my perfect coordination?

Regardless of my styling skills, their tall, slender figures made them look good in anything.

So I got even more excited and continued to browse, thinking that this would suit them, and so would that. Oh my, I have to buy this one!

“Director, you already bought a hat earlier….”

“It’s an investment, an investment.”

The more freely I swiped my card, the more the members’ expressions changed to one of wondering if they should stop me.

After all, the money being spent now wasn’t the hard-earned savings I accumulated over five years of enduring the company.

‘If it were money I had saved through all that hardship, I wouldn’t be able to spend it like this.’

I wasn’t sure how it was set up, but the money allocated to the Shin Joo-in of this world and the salary were part of this world.

While the game threw difficult situations at me, it also provided generous support. Like the house I suddenly acquired.

‘Come to think of it, there was talk among the fans that Newma employees should be paid in cyber money.’

Couldn’t the salary I received within this game world be considered a type of cyber money?

In any case, since it wasn’t money I had earned, it didn’t feel like real money, so I could splurge without thinking about the future.

It felt different from the styling I did in the game, since I was now doing it in real life, in real-time.

As the shopping bags piled up, so did my satisfaction.

Honestly, this is so much fun!

***

By the time we returned to the hotel after strolling through LA, the sun had begun to set.

Having walked around for a while, I decided to rest my legs and sat at the table on the room’s balcony.

Since the staff and members were mostly in two or three-person rooms, I shared a room with Yun-hee.

“This is the first time I’ve seen someone enjoy a business trip like this.”

“Think of it as a sightseeing trip instead.”

Technically speaking, our work would only start with the music video shoot, so it was a bit of a stretch to call it a business trip until then.

So, calling it sightseeing wasn’t wrong.

Yun-hee, having changed into more comfortable clothes, sat across from me.

Sitting face-to-face in casual attire, unlike the usual business attire I saw at the company, made it feel more like a vacation.

As we quietly enjoyed the moment, I heard music coming from somewhere.

When I looked towards the direction of the sound, I realized it was coming from the members’ rooms.

‘They even brought their guitar cases.’

I remembered that Jun-hae and Woohyung had been taking turns carrying a guitar case.

It seemed the sound of a guitar being played in one of the rooms was drifting through the open balcony door.

Considering how the same section was repeated and the melody slightly changed, they were probably composing again.

One reason for coming overseas was to seek inspiration in a different environment. I wondered if it helped.

“Ah~. Youth….”

I stretched out my legs, closed my eyes, and quietly enjoyed the sound of the guitar.

***

Team Miro rented a practice room to use until the competition began.

On the second day in LA, I accompanied the members to the practice room.

The Miro team members, who were sweating as they practiced, took a break when we arrived.

When we placed the desserts and drinks we had brought on the table, they were welcomed with enthusiasm.

“Wow! Just in time, I was running low on sugar. Thanks!”

“We’re getting spoiled thanks to Jae Min.”

The snacks the members brought were plentiful and varied enough that it was impossible to finish them all at once.

Wanting to make a good impression, as if I were a parent temporarily entrusted with Jae Min, I indulged in another small splurge.

Seeing the Miro team members chatting, saying, “This must be the power of company resources.”

‘They must have given me a good score, right?’

…But why do I feel a pang of guilt?

The Miro team members didn’t seem to know exactly how much Jae Min had suffered at Newma before.

If they had known, would they even be able to greet us with a smile?

Seeing Jae Min’s face light up as he cheerfully greeted the members after just one day apart made me feel sentimental again.

As they sat in a casual circle, the Miro team members began to take an interest in the Monochrome members.

“Wow. The physique is no joke.”

“This hyung is our team’s main dancer.”

“Oh~.”

Introduced as the main dancer in front of the dance team competing in a global competition, Haerang’s expression turned complex.

“You’re the main dancer now.”

“Then I’ll be the main rapper.”

When Jae Min tried to claim the main rapper position, Haerang silently responded with his gaze.

“Is this the main rapper?”

“Yeah. Haerang hyung, I told you before that I learned to rap too, right? He’s the one who taught me.”

“Hey, I only dabbled in it.”

Even the Miro team member sitting next to Jae Min felt embarrassed to say he rapped now that a real rapper was present and shyly covered his face.

“How about a rap battle…,” Jae Min started, but quickly stopped when he received sharp looks from the two of them.

Thanks to the friendly team atmosphere, the Monochrome members naturally blended in with the team.

Since we were in a practice room with dancers, the conversation naturally led to a dance performance by the Monochrome members.

Although the choreography for the new album’s title track was already complete, it felt a bit too early to perform the choreography for an unreleased song.

‘When did they practice this?’

Monochrome’s recent albums hadn’t had much promotion on music shows, so there hadn’t been any official choreography.

Despite that, the members spent most of their time in the practice room.

With no support from the company, they taught themselves by watching videos.

As I watched the members dance, I once again felt a pang of guilt.

“People tend to underestimate idols, but they’re really all-rounders.”

Fortunately, even to the trained eyes of the professional dance team members, they seemed impressive.

Despite being on break, the Miro team members, eager to talk about dance, soon got up and joined the Monochrome members, moving their bodies this way and that.

“Can you try this move where you turn like this, and then do it like this?”

“Like this?”

“See? Because your limbs are long, it looks perfect.”

“What are we supposed to do? Our growth plates closed ages ago.”

“I think it’s more of a face issue than a height one.”

“I’ve been seeing a lot of this kind of choreography on TV lately.”

“Oh, that? You have to shift your weight onto this leg.”

I didn’t really understand what they were saying, but they were clearly excited to chat among themselves.

The Miro team members showed interest in idol choreography, which was similar yet distinct.

Before I knew it, it turned into an impromptu dance training session.

The two leader watched their team members and the Monochrome members as they interacted, chatting among themselves.

“They’re really good, just like Jae Min’s team.”

“Jae Min had talent from the start.”

Yes, and it was our company that failed to nurture that talent.

Thinking about that, another idea popped into my head.

“…Do you think you could come up with some choreography ideas for idols?”

They seemed to catch on to what I was implying.

“We’ve never created choreography concepts, but we have done some training….”

“I’ve only worked on girl group choreography before.”

If they were the ones who helped Jae Min’s talent blossom…

“Could I… get the leader’s contact information?”