The Thing He Didn’t Tell Me

While the other Cha.N members were away on schedules, Hanbyeol saw Yooseong returning from the hospital and asked about his condition.

“Isn’t it better to tell Mom and Dad too, after all?”

Of course, they would worry if they knew, but wouldn’t it be worse for them to find out later and be even more upset?

However, Yooseong shook his head.

Since it was his own matter and not something Hanbyeol could decide to disclose, Hanbyeol just sighed.

“They’re both busy; I can’t add to their worries.

Dad must be swamped with his thesis, and Mom is on a business trip now.

She probably took a flight out, so even if I told her, she wouldn’t be able to come back.”

“That’s true…”

Hanbyeol agreed with Yooseong’s words.

It wasn’t that their parents didn’t love their sons.

They cherished and loved them enough, but time with their busy parents was always scarce.

And so, the sons grew up leaning on each other in their parents’ absence, becoming teenagers and then adults.

So, not being able to tell their parents was understandable enough.

Hanbyeol figured if he were sick, he would have told only Yooseong too.

Still, worried about his brother’s health, Hanbyeol spoke again.

“But, what’s the cause of the stress?”

“What cause? There’s no celebrity without health issues.

And stress is common even for non-celebrities.”

“Well, that’s true, but brother has never been like this before.”

No matter how he looked at it, it was strange.

Of course, Hanbyeol, having watched from the sidelines, knew best that it was a high-stress profession.

But for the past four years, nothing like this had happened.

On the contrary, Yooseong handled everything so adeptly that fans even suspected he was living a second life.

Of course, that was absurd, but to that extent, Yooseong, despite being younger, made fewer mistakes than Danyoung or Yoonseo, Cha.N’s leader.

No, they were almost non-existent.

Also, since Yooseong was known as a beta, he never got entangled with alpha-designated celebrities.

Even potential dating scandals with female celebrities that might have arisen were all preemptively handled by Yooseong.

And talent controversies? Of course, none.

As soon as MR-removed videos were posted online, the comments that flooded in were [Cha.N, don’t even go there with talent].

Even to Hanbyeol, who planned to major in composing, Cha.N’s individual talents were sufficient for solo debuts.

Having many schedules could also be stressful, but in Hanbyeol’s eyes, that wasn’t it either.

Cha.N had already been active for four years.

Now in their fifth year, Cha.N’s value had skyrocketed, placing them within the top five of so-called first-tier idol groups.

Because of that, compared to their debut days, schedules that required extreme physical exertion were fewer.

“The festival we went to the other day—didn’t you say it was to keep a promise made to fans two years ago?”

Compared to the metropolitan area, fans in regional areas always had a harder time moving around.

On variety shows or broadcasts, one could joke about doing something.

But Yooseong wasn’t the type to make empty promises, even in jest, so he fulfilled the event he promised the fans.

The more he thought, the less he could find anything strange based on Yooseong’s condition up until now.

If it was truly due to stress and not a physical issue, maybe he could help?

“It’s not just me who’s not feeling well. Everyone is.”

“What?”

“It’s just, there’s a lot of work.

Even machines break down if used non-stop.

And we’ve been running non-stop for four years, so that explains it.”

‘Then take a vacation, you idol bastard.’

Only then did Hanbyeol realize his brother had never taken a vacation all this time.

Even trips abroad were nominally vacations but were actually for reality show filming.

Occasional visits home was to pick up something or to have a meal with their parents by coordinating schedules.

Watching Yooseong smile, saying he was really fine, Hanbyeol closed his mouth as the Cha.N members returned.

While Yooseong stepped out to wash up, Hanbyeol quietly knocked on Danyoung’s room.

In the room shared by Danyoung, the eldest and leader of Cha.N, and the maknae, Yechan, fan letters were scattered about.

“Hanbyeol-ah~ You can come in, but don’t step on the letters?”

“…I came because I was curious about something, but if you’re busy, should I leave?”

“No~ Yechan’s bed is empty, so you can sit there.”

“Ah, talk while you move your hands.

Why is a ‘Baek’ coming after a ‘Park’? Should be ‘Ban’!”

‘Maybe I came at a bad time.’

Hanbyeol sighed and helped organize the fan letters in alphabetical order.

He judged it would be easier to slip in a question while helping.

As Hanbyeol planned, Danyoung and Yechan, though looking a bit awkward, opened their mouths at his question.

“You’re asking why everyone’s not feeling well lately? It doesn’t seem like something we should be talking about in front of you, Hanbyeol-ah, who’s studying for CSAT…”

“Once CSAT is over, my situation will improve.

I’m also not feeling great, but if brother is sick too, I don’t even know how to explain it to our parents.

I’m worried because brother is sick.”

According to his brother, the other members understood his worry for his brother studying for the exam, so they readily agreed to Hanbyeol’s dorm visits.

But in Hanbyeol’s eyes, that didn’t seem to be the only reason.

No matter how he looked, there was a strange vibe.

In truth, Yooseong didn’t need to avoid schedules just because Hanbyeol wasn’t feeling well.

Hanbyeol knew about Yooseong’s physical issues, but the members didn’t.

Hanbyeol strongly felt that the concern over his own health seemed like just a ‘secondary reason.’

That’s why he dared to enter the room of Danyoung, the leader.

“Yooseong brother also doesn’t look well.

But he still tries to take care of me.

That’s why I need to know.”

Danyoung and Yechan, who had been sighing, exchanged glances for a moment, then turned to Hanbyeol.

“You know our contract period is ending this time, right?”

Of course, I know.

It’s my own brother’s group; how could I not know?

Hanbyeol was even a member of Cha.N’s fan club, SIGNAL.

Of course, it was to support his brother’s activities.

To join as a real fan… but he has his own brother.

Even if they were just normal, close brothers, holding merchandise with his brother’s name on it or waving shiny light sticks was a bit…

[Yoon Danyoung! Jung Yoonseo! Kim Sehyun! Choi Yooseong! Ha Yechan! We love you! Stay with us! Cha—Nel!]

…And shouting his brother’s name in the middle of songs was also a bit much.

So, he just joined and left it at that.

He did have a desire for limited editions, so he bought the fan club kits available for a limited time each period… but they were piled up, still in their plastic wrap.

[‘You just bought these and never opened them?’]

[‘If I open them… my brother’s face is inside.’]

[‘…?’]

[‘Is there a need to have my brother’s picture in photo form?’]

[‘….’]

Getting back on track, Hanbyeol blinked at the sudden mention of the contract period.

Danyoung, pondering how to explain, smiled again.

“We’re not renewing our contracts this time.

Instead, we’re receiving investment from the parent company and setting up our own label separately.”

That makes sense.

How much money has Cha.N earned for the agency?

Among idol programs, the most successful was [Pick, My Dol!], which Cha.N debuted from, and their debut season was the most successful case.

Since then, many idol debut programs were created, and there were somewhat successful idol groups, but many more faded away without a trace.

It’s said no audition program-born idol has been as successful as Cha.N.

So, the agency must have debated a lot.

Hanbyeol was sure the agency would never let Cha.N go.

They probably approached contract renewal with sweet talk and promises of good treatment.

The agency was originally created with capital from a large corporation that owned a broadcasting network.

Even if they insisted strongly on leaving for another company, what more could they face than being banned from appearing on Vnet?

But as is typical with companies created this way, it was a mess—reckless, arrogant, with the worst artist management, viewing fans as cash cows…

They were only enduring because they were bound by contract; there was no need to stay together.

So, it seemed the best method even to Hanbyeol.

Instead of remaining under the agency’s name, the members would create a label with investment from the agency’s parent company.

They would maintain the conglomerate’s capital power while gaining relatively higher autonomy.

For the agency officials watching their signed artists being taken by the parent company, it might be a situation to grab them by the scruff, but excluding the agency, the conglomerate gets Cha.N—an image booster and golden goose—the broadcaster gets to cast Cha.N members without corporate pressure, and Cha.N gains autonomy and a better profit split ratio.

“Is that causing a lot of stress?”

Hanbyeol, thinking about the connection between establishing a label and his brother’s health, tilted his head curiously.

Because no matter the stress, Yooseong’s physical condition was far worse compared to the other members.

Unable to bring up the pheromone issue, Hanbyeol looked at Danyoung and Yechan with slight suspicion.

Yechan scratched his cheek.

“Actually, if we establish a label, we won’t just remain as artists.

That might have been a bit hard for Yooseong brother.”

“Ah…”

The Cha.N members, except Yooseong, were former agency trainees.

Like trainees these days, they had received some composition lessons from the company, which gave them the ability to create their own songs.

Just these two in front of him had participated as lyricists in over 50 songs on Cha.N’s albums, and he remembered they had also contributed lyrics to other groups or artists’ albums.

In short, it meant they could also act as the label’s lead producers.

They had even discussed, after establishing the label, participating in production and nurturing junior idols.

It was added that while showcasing singing and dancing like now was about honing one’s skills to match the members, other aspects might have been stressful for Yooseong.