The End of Red Moon

Miracles didn’t strike twice. Contrary to the sliver of hope I’d clung to, I had awoken once more in Kwon Yohan’s body. At four in the morning, I located the medicine in the spot Kwon Yohan had described and swallowed it. Then, I opened the mini-fridge. Half of it was stocked with a single brand of bottled water, while the other half was filled with snacks like puddings and stick cakes. I pulled out a bottle of water.

Gulping down the water, I unbuttoned my pajamas with my free hand. Once I took them off, I was utterly dumbfounded. I’d never worn anything like them in my life; the design was so excessively cute it was almost overwhelming.

“Are all his pajamas like this?”

I rummaged through the closet, searching for something to wear immediately. The closet was so generously sized that I initially wondered if it was shared among the members, but a quick check of the clothing sizes confirmed everything belonged to Kwon Yohan. After discovering several more pajamas of a similar design, I averted my gaze from the dreadful truth and haphazardly picked out an outfit to wear.

Knock, knock. Just as I finished getting dressed, a timely knock sounded at the door.

“Yohan, it’s time to get up.”

The owner of the gentle voice was obvious. In HEX, Yoon Jihyuk was the only one who treated Kwon Yohan with such delicate solicitude. Instead of answering, I opened the door.

“When are we leaving?”

“Oh, you didn’t lock the door?”

Yoon Jihyuk’s eyes crinkled charmingly as he smiled.

“We’ll be leaving in thirty minutes. You can take your time getting ready.”

Despite his words, he himself appeared to have already completed all preparations. He looked perfectly ready to step out and go about his day. Though not overtly dressed up, his attire was neat, and his hair, which would undoubtedly be styled upon arrival at the broadcasting station, was already meticulously groomed.

As I had noticed since yesterday, he was so flawlessly composed that he almost lacked a certain human touch. Without a glance at my lingering stare, Yoon Jihyuk turned and walked away, as if his task was complete.

I sat on the bed, replaying the choreography videos a few more times, before heading out just barely on time. It was about five minutes before Yoon Jihyuk’s stated departure time. All the other members were gathered in the living room.

Lee Seon, standing askew with his hands in his hoodie pockets, glared at me with a suspicious expression. Yoon Jihyuk, who had been on the phone, looked at Lee Seon and spoke.

“The managers are all downstairs. Let’s head out now.”

“Okay!”

Even the perpetually disgruntled Maltese seemed to transform into a docile lamb at his single word. Feeling rather unenthusiastic, I followed behind the other members as they led the way. Then, something caught my eye, a minor detail that bothered me.

“Hey, stop right there.”

All the members turned to look at me simultaneously.

“…Me?”

Lee Seon retorted, his face utterly bewildered.

“Yes. Who else would it be?”

I reached out and straightened Lee Seon’s flipped-up hoodie. He’d likely take it off soon anyway, but it was bothering me nonetheless.

“Wha—what was that?”

Lee Seon jumped back, shuddering.

“If that was supposed to be fashion, then just wear it like that.”

At my indifferent reply, Lee Seon let out a strange ‘Huh!’ sound and stomped away. ‘What the hell. How bizarre. What’s wrong with him?’ No one bothered to respond to his muttered complaints.

****

Upon arriving at the waiting room, my first priority was to find the cue sheet. The freshly printed, pristine white paper lay on the table in front of the sofa. I immediately picked up the sheet and scanned its contents.

Once. Twice. Thrice. Having meticulously read from the first line to the last, I had no choice but to accept the truth: Red Moon’s name was nowhere to be found.

‘Hmph…’

‘So, is this the end for my group?’ I couldn’t escape the wave of exhaustion that washed over me like a tsunami. From the agency’s perspective, it wouldn’t be a significant loss. The only costs incurred would have been the outfits for five members – not even production expenses – and the travel booking fee for one salon staff member. That would be all. Our damn boss might even be rejoicing that he saved money.

Come to think of it, it was a miracle they hadn’t disbanded the group much earlier and had let it run its full contract term. It was equally astonishing that they had continued to send such a team, with absolutely no achievements to speak of, onto music show stages.

I set the paper down and sank into the sofa. As I squeezed my eyes shut and exhaled deeply, the turbulent emotions within me seemed to calm, if only slightly.

Unable to let go of my lingering attachments, I turned on my phone screen. First, I searched ‘Red Moon Lee Jio’ on the portal site. I hadn’t expected much, but sure enough, there were no notable articles. No one would care about the accident of an unknown group member, after all.

Next, I navigated to Red Moon’s official SNS account.

[Hello. This is Cookie Entertainment.]

I clicked the link attached to the chilling message.

[Due to artist circumstances, Red Moon will be unable to participate in Music On Stage on April 9th. We apologize for any concern this may cause. Red Moon’s current activities concluded as of April 7th.]

‘If the content was going to be this insincere and brief, why bother posting it with a link at all? They could have just posted it directly. Should I praise them for their honesty, given there wasn’t even a perfunctory promise to focus on artist care in the future, or to anticipate the next activity?’

The few comments were all plastered with question marks. All of them were familiar accounts.

There was nothing I could have done. Intellectually, I knew it wasn’t my fault. Yet, a crushing guilt weighed heavily on my chest, as if I had stolen the chance for the members and fans to properly graduate from ‘Red Moon’. The suffocating feeling was unbearable.

Just then, something cold touched my forehead.

“What is it?”

Choi Seung-beom stood over me, casting a shadow. Staring intently without blinking, he pressed something into my hand. It was a canned electrolyte drink.

“Snap out of it.”

“…Thank you.”

“Drink that, then go change.”

In an instant, my mind, lost in thought, was yanked back to reality. ‘Had I been stewing in my own thoughts for longer than I realized?’ The other members had already changed clothes, and the salon staff had entered the waiting room. ‘I hadn’t even heard them come in.’

After chugging the drink, I went to the dressing room to change. When I returned, Han Doyoung was locked in a staring contest with the cue sheet.

‘What is he doing now?’

Well, it was none of my concern. I pulled out Kwon Yohan’s tablet from my bag, which I had found the previous night. Kwon Yohan had set all his electronic devices to unlock via facial recognition, making it easy for me to turn on the screen.

Though the number of videos was staggering, they were thankfully well-organized into folders, allowing me to quickly find the choreography videos. I put in my earphones and focused on the screen. My intention was to commit to memory the details I hadn’t managed to check yesterday.

****

While I was having lunch, after successfully completing the pre-recording, a call came through.

[Kwon Haeun]

Despite the three-character name being bluntly saved without any honorifics, it wasn’t hard to guess that the caller was Kwon Yohan’s family. The Kwon surname wasn’t particularly common, and with names like Yohan and Haeun, the connection was quite obvious. Without a moment’s hesitation, I pressed the answer button.

“Hello?”

–Kwon Yohan. What did you say to Mom?

Before I could even finish my sentence, the caller cut me off sharply, launching into an accusation. I inadvertently asked back,

“Pardon?”

–Don’t play innocent. If you hadn’t put ideas in her head, Mom wouldn’t be spouting nonsense about hiring your group as advertising models.

I stared blankly at my cooling bulgogi rice bowl. I needed a moment to process her words.

I had sufficiently realized last night that the rumor of Kwon Yohan being a rich kid was true. You could tell just by looking at his belongings. Even if he were successful, a rookie with nothing to their name wouldn’t own so many expensive items. Moreover, the fact that his contact for necessities was a secretary? This was irrefutable proof.

–Why are you silent? Is it because you’re guilty? That’s just like you. You’re always putting on a brave face, even though you can’t properly commit to anything. You’ll just pretend to work hard for a while and then quit, won’t you? Please, if you’re going to do that, at least try to live inconspicuously. How many times do I have to tell you to understand?

“No, I—.”

–Because of your improper conduct, our family relations almost got exposed, and I barely managed to cover it up. How much more do you need to disgrace our family and cause trouble before you’re satisfied? Did I ask for something difficult? Just travel and enjoy your hobbies, live comfortably doing nothing. I told you that would help us.

Kwon Haeun didn’t give me a chance to speak.

–You’re driving me crazy. How long do I have to clean up after you? Even without your antics, your brother and I are busy to death.

From her tone, it was clear she was his older sister, whether biological or a cousin. I seized the opportunity when Kwon Haeun paused her rapid-fire assault, sighing deeply, and interjected.

“Sister, I never put ideas in Mom’s head.”

–If not you, then who?

She shrieked. A tearing sound came from the speaker. I squeezed my eyes shut and briefly pulled the phone away from my ear, then put it back.

–…Never mind. Just show up properly for the family gathering on Sunday.

“Sunday? When?”

–When else? Evening, of course.

It was comeback week, so there was no way I wouldn’t be on a Sunday music show. Kwon Yohan had mentioned it yesterday, too. Still, if it was only a daytime broadcast, I might be able to make time in the evening… I asked the person closest to me.

“Hyung, do we have any other schedules on Sunday besides the music show?”

Of all people, it had to be Han Doyoung. He frowned deeply and replied curtly,

“You have a radio show with me at eight o’clock.”

I nodded absently, focusing on the person on the phone.

“I have a schedule, so I don’t think I can make it.”

–Are you really going to ignore me for some trivial thing like that?

“No, I’m not ignoring you. It’s just that the schedule comes first.”

–Kwon Yohan! The caller shrieked again.

“It might be trivial to you, Sister, but it’s work for me, so I can’t cancel. If it’s something important, maybe we can meet after our promotional activities are over.”

‘I’m busy, so I’m hanging up.’ After stating this abruptly, I cut the call. I could still hear her screaming something until the very end, but I decided to pay it no mind.

My attention shifted to the lunchbox container, which I had neglected during the call. The food, which had been perfectly warm, had cooled a bit, but it was still edible. I had a long history of making do with cup noodles or triangle kimbap, fearing the food expenses that would appear on my settlement statement.

As I pushed rice into my mouth, I felt a gaze. I looked up and met Han Doyoung’s eyes; he was still sitting in the same spot.

“Your sister is quite intense.”

He said indifferently, then stood up and swiftly walked out.

“…What was that?”

His strangely softened demeanor gave me goosebumps.