NOVEL NEXT Chapter 226
The concert’s opening VCR has faded away…
Dooong-.
Pa-at!
“Waaaaaaah—!!”
As the center spotlight shone, the members of Rookies, dressed in [Secret Girl] outfits, appeared at a desk on stage, clearly having been there for who-knows-how-long.
♪♬♬-!!
The intro of [Secret Girl] started playing.
-Don’t come too close
-This is the distance between you and me
“Don’t come—!!”
Yoo Chang-seon began the cheer routines with the girl beside him and the 15,000 Rookies fans filling the seats.
That fiery energy revitalized Yoo Chang-seon’s previously bored eyes.
‘This is fun.’
When he first saw Ha Ye-rin in the military, he thought her face was nice.
Then it was her voice and dance.
He grew to love her performances, and he liked Ha Ye-rin as a person.
After that, he didn’t just like Ha Ye-rin anymore.
There was also… Lee Hye-jeong, Yoo Seol, Na Han-na, Park Yoo-jung, Seo Yoo-jin.
He liked all the Rookies members.
He liked all of Rookies’ songs.
He liked music shows. He liked music videos. He liked showcases.
And right now…
Alongside countless Rookies fans who shared his thoughts…
“Waaaaah—!!”
“Rookies—!”
Waving hands and cheering was simply delightful.
Before the concert started, Yoo Chang-seon felt a twinge of sadness thinking this would be Rookies’ last activity.
But at this moment…
He forgot everything and just focused on supporting Rookies’ stage and them.
-But if you’re still curious
-Come follow me
“Follow me—!!!”
Thus, the first and last concert of Rookies began with that scorching heat.
*
When the performance of the title track [Secret Girl] concluded, the next stage was a track from their debut album.
Despite being less popular than the title track…
Rookies fans continued to cheer and shout just as loud as during [Secret Girl].
“Waaaaah—!”
“Gyaaaah—!!”
“They’re pretty—!!”
It was truly a festival.
At first, Yoo Chang-seon felt pressured in front of so many fans, worrying if they could showcase their performance properly…
‘This is fun…’
But now, all he felt was joy and excitement.
The 15,000 fans here liked and loved him…, us.
They knew our songs and sang along.
They laughed. They screamed.
All that energy gathered around him, filling his whole body.
With the fans’ passionate heat, he and the other members could continue on stage not with gloom but with uplifting vibes, even if it was the last concert.
After finishing the stage of the tracks from the debut album…
“Everyone—!”
“Waaaaah—!”
He picked up the microphone.
What sets concerts apart from other stages like music shows or festivals is the small talk segments in between.
“Thank you for coming like this!”
“Gyaaaah—!”
As his face appeared on the big screen, the fans cheered again.
Responding to the fans’ cheers, they bowed their heads once and smiled as they continued.
“This next stage is our first single [Breaking Bad!]! We will start right away, so enjoy!”
“Waaaaah—! …Hmm?”
Amid the cheers, many fans showed confusion.
For good reason…, they were still wearing the same outfits from [Secret Girl].
The concept of their debut album [Graduation] was that of a transfer student.
Thus, they were dressed in the same school uniforms as during Na Ah Ah’s performance.
But the concept of [Breaking Bad!] was girl crush and sexy.
‘The outfits from the debut album don’t match the concept of [Breaking Bad!]?’
…they must’ve thought.
But before the fans could resolve their confusion, the intro of [Breaking Bad!] began playing.
♪♩♩♩-!
And just before the first verse…
Shraaaaaak.
“……!!!”
Backup dancers rushed in from behind and tore the outfits off one by one.
In the sudden chaos, what was revealed was the [Breaking Bad!] outfits underneath.
Only then did the fans realize this was a prepared performance and screamed.
“Gyaaaaaah—!!”
“Waaaaah—!”
Though he had just turned adult this year… half of Rookies members were still minors.
Perhaps because of that, they often maintained boundaries when deciding concepts.
Even though [Breaking Bad!] was the only song with a sexy concept, it was still quite wholesome compared to other idols.
There were times when he felt disappointed by that, so he suggested tearing the clothes for this performance.
Of course, the performance wasn’t lewd nor were the outfits excessively short…
“Crazy—!!!!”
“Protect the kids—!!”
“Hey, kids—!!!!!!”
To the long-catered fans, it probably seemed way too daring.
It felt like the reaction when cherished daughters suddenly came home plastered with tattoos.
The overly protective concern of the fans made him laugh somehow.
*
“Aah…! You’ll catch a cold, kids…!”
Yoo Chang-seon shouted out of genuine concern at Rookies’ outfit tearing performance.
Honestly, the outfits weren’t that short.
They were rather covered up compared to the average of sexy concepts.
But inside, Yoo Chang-seon truly did worry.
In fact, while in the military, he liked bold outfits on idols…
But with Rookies, he felt a stronger desire to protect them.
Especially Ha Ye-rin.
Yoo Chang-seon felt an intense urge to approach his favorite, Ha Ye-rin, and drape a coat over her.
However, contradicting those thoughts…
‘…But Ye-rin is really freaking pretty.’
He couldn’t take his eyes off Ha Ye-rin.
At that moment, Ye-rin’s appearance… seemed to trigger a primal instinct within him.
-I’m not the fool you think I am
Usually, whenever he watched Ha Ye-rin perform, he would get absorbed into her strangely.
-B-B-Breaking bad!
-Stop pretending to be good
But this time, he was immersed for a different reason…
*
After the somewhat daring [Breaking Bad!] performance ended, the next segment featured personal cover stages by the members.
From Lee Hye-jeong’s ballad performance to Seo Yoo-jin’s legendary SAV group cover, Na Han-na’s American hip-hop dance track, and Park Yoo-jung’s themed song from nostalgic female-oriented animations.
“Waaaaah—!”
Rookies fans enthusiastically cheered for the members’ solo song stages, witnessing them for the first time since the Na Ah Ah ranking evaluation.
And next up was Yoo Seol.
“What will Seol sing?”
“Who knows.”
Since the songs each member would perform were kept a complete secret until the start, people could only guess.
With that curiosity and anticipation, Yoo Seol stepped onto the stage.
“Wait?”
“Where have I seen that outfit before…?”
While the fans tilted their heads looking at Yoo Seol in a somewhat cheerful outfit, the song began.
♩♪♬♬-!
“……!”
This was a track that no idol fan could be oblivious to.
It was the debut song [Bright and Dignified] from the top 3 agencies, JJ Entertainment, Tail Rose.
Everyone knew that Yoo Seol was originally from JJ Entertainment.
They also knew that she was originally part of the Tail Rose debut team but had dropped for some unknown reason.
Despite being a bad memory for Yoo Seol…
She chose this song as if to crash through head-on.
-Whenever I see you, my body shakes baby
-I don’t know why I keep doing this~
And so the performance commenced.
Yoo Seol began to perfectly sing the debut song of seven-member Tail Rose all by herself, live.
-Face smiling brightly
-Arms raised confidently
“Wow, waaaaaah—!”
“Yoo Seol—!!”
At first, fans watched the stage with some worried eyes, but soon cheered at the quality of the performance that matched the original.
Thus, Yoo Seol firmly made her identity and skills known to many fans.
“Impressive.”
Han Si-woo, who was watching Yoo Seol’s performance right below the stage, immersed in admiration.
What was Yoo Seol’s strength?
Her sweet vocal ability? Excellent performance? Detailed emotional acting and intricacies?
None of those.
Yoo Seol’s greatest strength was her intelligence.
As Rookies were about to scatter off in all directions with their period coming to an end…, each member, whether willingly or not, had to decide what to do next.
By skillfully covering a seven-member song all by herself, Yoo Seol once again proved her worth.
‘She’s frighteningly rational.’
Just as Han Si-woo had rated her second-highest during Na Ah Ah.
And next was the stage of the member he rated the highest.
Ha Ye-rin.
If Yoo Seol was very smart and rational…
“Hoho, Ye-rin still doesn’t know…”
Han Si-woo still couldn’t fully grasp Ha Ye-rin’s character.
Sometimes she was like a child…, and other times like an adult…
‘Was this song selection intentional?’
If so, it was frighteningly meticulous.
Just the fact that Ha Ye-rin chose this song made Han Si-woo’s heart race immensely.
“Wait, she’s coming up.”
While having such thoughts, Ha Ye-rin climbed onto the stage.
And once she got on stage, she spotted Han Si-woo and…
Winked playfully.
“……”
With a mischievous smile, she threw him a small wink.
“…If she’s doing that unconsciously, then she’s really something.”
Han Si-woo felt his heart racing like crazy as he recalled what Sua once said to him.
‘Oppa, do you have someone you like?’
Back then, he said no…, but it seemed to be true.
Of course, it was more like philia love rather than eros love…
Han Si-woo realized he had been entirely captivated and entrapped by Ha Ye-rin.
“…Damn. If I say this, I’ll be called a thief and a pervert; I can’t tell anyone.”
And so, with Han Si-woo’s bittersweet monologue, Ha Ye-rin’s personal cover stage commenced.