The Evidence They Never Saw Coming

From the perspective of those who first remembered Yechan from the [Pick My Dol!] broadcast period, they naturally assumed he had been a trainee preparing to be an idol, so the candidate for his middle school was ‘Ye-jung.’

His trainee period was 6 months.
His trainee period wasn’t as long as one might think, and moreover, his gentle looks were firmly imprinted in memory.

But at the end of his third year of middle school.
He started his trainee life based on his singing skills alone, but Yechan’s body, which had some bulk at the time, didn’t lose weight easily.

He gave up high school entrance for debut and dedicated himself to training, but his short trainee period ended due to weight that wouldn’t drop even a single gram.

Yechan, who resolved to lose weight drastically, appeared on the program the year after the next, in February, with an unrecognizable appearance…
That’s the story known up to now.

“What I find most amazing is that my brother Yuseong suddenly took that album away then.”
“Ah….”

Maybe he was possessed by a spirit?
Hanbyeol nodded as if that was a possibility.

“They say sometimes celebrities get possessed.”
“Haha…”
“They say a celebrity’s fate is similar to a shaman’s.”
“Hanbyeol-ah. Where did you see that?”
“YouTube.”

Now Taeha had an expression of enlightenment.

The answer related to Yechan’s situation was in the graduation album Yuseong took.
In the graduation album he had taken for their own content filming, there was a photo of Yechan before his diet.

After that photo spread, people claiming to be Yechan’s classmates came forward, and rebuttals spread that ‘the story of Yechan’s school violence makes no sense.’

Hanbyeol did almost nothing here.
He only asked for help because he knew his friend Jaehwi’s older sister was the same age as Yuseong.

With graduation album proof, proof of being in the same class, and posts saying Yechan was a quiet, kind, and considerate friend in class, the ripple effects quickly subsided.

In the midst of this, somehow finding out, Hanbyeol even received a thank you text from Yechan and scratched his cheek.

Hanbyeol stretched once thoroughly, then rubbed his shoulder with one hand.

“Ah, right. Taeha, what happened with that? The short-term language study program?”

He himself had to prepare for practical exams after the CSAT, but with Taeha’s grades, he could probably even get into medical school.

Since there was time between the CSAT ending and application submissions, maybe he planned to go during that time?
As Hanbyeol thought this, his eyes widened at Taeha’s following answer.

“I’m not going.”
“What? Why?”

Why throw away such a good opportunity?
Seeing Hanbyeol blinking rapidly, Taeha smiled briefly and shook his head.

“It’s not advantageous. It’s better to prepare for something else during that time.”
“But still, experiencing life there firsthand is better, isn’t it?”
“For just a month?”
“Well…”

Hanbyeol’s expression as he answered became ambiguous.
Language study programs are usually 6 months to a year.
It’s a period good for directly experiencing life abroad.

But to put it nicely, it’s a month.
The language study program proposed by the show Taeha was on was a short period of about 3 weeks, not even a month.

Depending on the expensive location, he heard it could be reduced to 2 weeks.
It’s a hopelessly insufficient period for studying.

“Wouldn’t it be better to go on a working holiday privately instead?”

I agree.
Then you could earn money and study English.

Hanbyeol readily agreed.
Just because Taeha doesn’t go on that language program doesn’t mean the university scholarships he’ll receive in the future will disappear.
Just one overseas experience opportunity would be lost.

“And, I lived abroad when I was little, so it’s fine. I don’t really need to go.”

Ah, then he really doesn’t need it.
The world is wide, and there were more people than one might think with good family backgrounds who were also overpowered individuals themselves.

Taeha, sitting next to him, stared intently at Hanbyeol.
As Hanbyeol turned his head at the intensely felt gaze while checking messages on his phone, Taeha narrowed his eyes.

“Why?”

Is there something on my face?
Raising his hand to touch his cheek, Taeha let out a powerless laugh as if he had no choice.

“No. The CSAT is at our school tomorrow, right?”
“What class were you again?”
“Huh? I’m in class 4. Taeha, you were in class 2, right?”
“Yeah. Eunhan and Jaehwi were assigned to different schools, I heard…”
“Do you want to have lunch together?”
“Were you planning to tell me to eat alone?”

As Hanbyeol asked with a playful, teasing smile, Taeha flusteredly shook his head.
That’s not it.

Looking at Taeha, who was only gentle despite his looks, Hanbyeol fell into worry.

Yuseong hyung took Taeha’s number.
He didn’t know if there had been contact, but he had a rough idea why he took it.

He probably wouldn’t talk to Taeha about it immediately, but maybe he’d ask for a trainee contract after Cha.N’s label is established?

Imagining the always kind and gentle Taeha joining his brother’s company as a trainee, Hanbyeol looked at his friend with a serious expression.

“Would he get… swayed?”
“By what?”
“Taeha-ya.”
“Yeah.”
“No matter how well you know someone, you have to be careful when signing a contract.”
“…….”
“Especially my brother. Got it?”

Taeha, meeting Hanbyeol’s serious gaze, smiled and nodded.

“I understand.”
“Don’t sign right away, and you absolutely must bring a lawyer.”
“Okay.”
“If it really doesn’t work, talk to me at least.”

Although Taeha kept saying he understood, Hanbyeol couldn’t quite believe it, and his worry didn’t fade.

Meanwhile, Yuseong was dumbfounded.

“Hanbyeol did?”
“Uh…”

Sehyun scratched his head and played the audio file.

He already had a response method in mind for the controversy about his alleged power abuse.
Since he already knew where the absurd story started, Yuseong, who was preparing to respond, found his thoughts complicated by the content that unexpectedly came from Hanbyeol.

He was accustomed to paying attention so that nothing happened easily and sorting out situations.
Because the program that created Cha.N was an audition show known to be extremely intense, it was hard to survive without being perceptive.

The fabricated controversy that slipped through the cracks was something that would subside if you just flipped the situation a bit.
Since it was the same for the youngest, Yechan’s situation, the matter related to Sehyun was also something that would change quickly if you just scratched the surface a bit to expose the falsehood.

“This… is the recording from that day, right?”
“Yeah…”

Most of Cha.N’s schedules were with staff.
Even for hastily arranged local events, in addition to the accompanying manager, other staff were positioned for emergencies, and corresponding video and audio recordings continued.

You never know what videos will be uploaded to the YouTube channel.
It’s natural because there’s demand from fans who want to see the lively moments of the members before going on stage.

Sehyun’s controversy also started from a situation during an event, not a broadcast stage.
It began when Sehyun, the best dancer among the members and sensitive to stage perfection, made a few requests to the stage manager.

Of course, sudden requests could be flustering.
But since Cha.N’s choreography is intense, they couldn’t compromise on safety-related matters.

‘I’m sorry, but for safety, I’ll go up only after all instruments on the stage are cleared.’

Considering the members’ movements, the probability of tripping over instruments left on stage was high.
Even if they reduced movement, friction arose between Sehyun, who thought of the one-in-a-million chance, and the staff.

Yuseong, who had returned after briefly looking for Hanbyeol, who had stepped away, confirmed Sehyun speaking to an event staff member at that time.

It was something a performer could reasonably request.
Moreover, it was a request made under the judgment that it would be okay to go up after clearing the stage somewhat since it was the final performance.

Of course, until the other party overreacted.

‘No, it’s not like the stage is small, you can just go up.’

To the person who abruptly used informal speech, Sehyun made an awkward expression but didn’t lose his smile.

‘Sir, I’m sorry, but please refrain from using informal speech.’
‘Do we have to do everything you ask? Just because you’re from Seoul?’
‘If it delays the stage timing too much, it’s fine, but I think that drum will interfere with our stage movements. The amp can be moved back, but the middle part is…’

But no matter how much he talked, it didn’t get through.

Whether he didn’t like a young person telling him what to do, the staff member who shouted angrily only grumbled and cleared the stage after the Cha.N manager, who had gone to get the car, returned and spoke up.

Many people saw this situation.
So the Cha.N members were looking for rebuttal material centered on the staff who were with them.

Then, what was Hanbyeol thinking when he recorded?
Sehyun felt a lump in his chest and thought it was amazing upon receiving the recording on leader Danyeong’s phone.

No matter how famous you are, you’re bound to run into conflicts while touring stages.
Since the response that Yuseong or Danyeong would usually have taken the lead on came from Hanbyeol, everyone found it strange.

“Are you two, like, part of some secret organization or something?”
“What are you talking about…”
“Or like FBI, CIA…”
“We’re not Americans.”
“Then NIS… Ah, nowadays, what’s it called, the intelligence service?”
“Are you crazy… Kim Sehyun, do you want to go to the military that badly?”

Yuseong shook his head side-to-side.

Preparing for and moving according to the worst-case scenario was a habit since childhood.
Inheriting his parents’ personalities exactly and having grown up watching them, it was inevitable.

“It’s really impressive. You too, but wasn’t Hanbyeol really quick at grasping the entertainment industry?”

At Sehyun’s words, Yuseong stared at him intently.
Seemingly unaware of that gaze, the bright-faced Sehyun continued speaking with a cheerful expression.