NOVEL NEXT Chapter 77
Yoo Seol threw something at me with a cold expression, and it was…
‘…Medication?’
It was a medication bag blatantly filled with remnants of what she had taken.
Looking at the prescription and the number of remaining pills, it seemed she had been steadily taking the medication since she got it a week ago.
I couldn’t help but be taken aback.
‘If she was just pretending to be sick, she didn’t need to go this far…’
Then, could it be…
Maybe she read my thoughts on my face, as Yoo Seol continued with her icy expression.
“I got this medication a week ago after visiting the hospital in person.”
“……”
“It’s on camera, too, so you can check the broadcast.”
“…Then.”
“What do you mean ‘then’? I was really sick, and that immature girl said she wanted to be the leader and center first. Is further explanation necessary?”
Yoo Seol finished her sentence, threw me an annoyed glance, and got into the car.
Just before getting in, she threw one last line at me.
“For the love of everything, if you don’t know anything, don’t act out, Ye-rin. Okay? I’m begging you next time.”
“……”
Bang.
Before I could even respond, Yoo Seol closed the car door, and as soon as the door shut, the car started driving away.
“……”
I could only watch as Yoo Seol’s car became a small dot and vanished from sight.
“……”
“……”
The car was filled with silence.
“…Is something wrong?”
“……What?”
“I just thought your expression looked so bad…, never mind.”
The JJ road manager, who was briefly assigned to drop off Yoo Seol, broke the unwritten rule of not chatting with trainees and asked her.
It was understandable…
‘She always had a sour expression, but now it’s really serious…’
Yoo Seol never really looked cheerful during rides, but today it seemed worse.
Swish-.
“……”
But Yoo Seol seemed determined not to answer the road manager’s question and turned her head away.
The road manager understood her action and stopped asking further questions.
“……”
“……”
So, the two of them sat in the car without saying another word.
However, just because it was quiet didn’t mean the emotional storm had settled.
Yoo Seol was struggling with her expression, a skill she was usually adept at, and the manager noticed something was off.
…It was because of her earlier conversation with Ha Ye-rin.
She had thrown the medication bag while blaming Ha Ye-rin and defending herself.
Of course, she really had been sick.
Since the early morning of the second team competition, she was feeling chilly and had cold symptoms, which caused her not to participate properly in the song selection game at the Na Ah Ah Sports Day.
She went to the hospital right after and got the medication; hence, her physical condition wasn’t at 100%.
But…
‘It’ll boost unnie’s individual vote count.’
It was as Ha Ye-rin said; Yu Seol was playing her cards right.
The moment she saw the team composition and the selected song, she planned to stand out even if it meant giving up on the team competition.
And… being sick served as a wonderful excuse.
Even when not in perfect condition, she could still lead the team or actively participate in practice.
But she didn’t do that.
She ignored the leader and passed the center position to Seo Yoo-jin and didn’t offer any direction to a team that was struggling with a difficult song.
It was just a bonus that Seo Yoo-jin, who had a strong sense of pride, was irritated.
The team was sinking into a mess, and she was displaying a dignified facade despite being sick, trying to rack up individual votes.
Well, if there were any unexpected variables…
‘…Honestly, that stage was disappointing for me personally.’
‘And I believe the responsibility for that lies with Seol unnie!’
‘She could have done so well; Seol unnie used being sick as an excuse and didn’t properly participate in practice…! She clearly did it intentionally to stand out in the competition!’
It was Seo Yoo-jin’s reckless behavior that surpassed Yu Seol’s expectations.
No matter how hard she tried to understand it, today’s actions by Seo Yoo-jin were incomprehensible from Yu Seol’s perspective.
Yoo Seol clicked her tongue at Seo Yoo-jin’s foolishness and irritably turned on her phone.
When she turned off notifications, countless supportive DMs poured in on her Instagram.
As expected, her plan had been quite successful.
Na Ah Ah wasn’t a place where ranks were determined solely by skill.
Even though it wasn’t a legitimate method, Yoo Seol felt no shame in her maneuvering in this team competition.
But…
But why…
‘For the love of everything, if you don’t know anything, don’t act out, Ye-rin. Okay? I’m begging you next time.’
…Why did she overreact earlier with Ha Ye-rin, even shoving the medication bag in her face?
…….
Quick-witted Yoo Seol was soon able to figure out the answer.
No matter how much she told herself she wasn’t ashamed and that she was proud, she indeed felt embarrassed.
She was ashamed of having sensed defeat before the competition even started and abandoning her team.
She was ashamed of pushing her younger sister to the edge of a cliff just to survive.
Was this the result of all the blood, sweat, and tears shed over nine years in training…? She felt embarrassed.
In contrast, Ha Ye-rin seemed to shine…
That she had led her team to victory with confidence even in tough conditions, different from her own choices made her envious.
She wanted to hurt Ha Ye-rin’s feelings somehow, throwing the medication bag as an ugly excuse.
Boom.
“……!”
At that moment, the car entered a dark road without streetlights, and Yoo Seol’s reflection was visible in the window.
Yoo Seol had never thought of herself as not beautiful in her life.
But looking at the face reflected in the window now…, it appeared oddly ugly.
Swish-.
So, she turned her gaze elsewhere.
As time went on, she was moving farther away from the image she desired… but hadn’t she made that commitment countless times by now?
What was important to her now was to debut and earn enough money to cover her mother’s hospital bills.
‘…So let’s not waver.’
Therefore, she closed her eyes in the moving car and solidified her resolve once more.
No wavering, no guilt.
‘For now, just think about Na Ah Ah winning.’
To win Na Ah Ah, she would do whatever it takes, no holds barred.
With that, Yoo Seol focused on herself…
Slide-.
And she began to deepen the darkness within her heart.
“Haaaah…”
In the car heading back to Seoul, I let out a sigh.
‘For the love of everything, if you don’t know anything, don’t act out, Ye-rin. Okay? I’m begging you next time.’
…It was from that earlier conversation with Yoo Seol.
“…Did I mess up again…?”
Since I had previously misspoken with Yoo Seol, her final words especially weighed on me.
In reality, Yoo Seol was merely sick, and if she hadn’t directly engaged in today’s matter with Seo Yoo-jin…
‘…How much of this was planned from start to finish?’
‘For the love of everything, it’ll boost unnie’s individual vote count.’
…I must have really upset her.
“Phew…”
The relationship with Yoo Seol was, how should I put it… always complicated.
Initially, when I saw her stage during the ranking evaluation, I felt a sense of defeat while simultaneously wanting to get closer to her.
But whenever I tried to take a step toward her, she always took two steps back.
It felt like there was a massive wall erected between us, preventing any closeness.
Tap tap.
Feeling overwhelmed, I turned on my phone.
I wanted to check the public opinion surrounding our Na Ah Ah participants.
First, I logged into a female-only community I learned about through Lee Ji-woo.
This place was great for getting information, especially about Na Ah Ah, as discussions about idols, particularly in connection with the show, often circulated.
I started by looking for posts mentioning my name on the anonymous board.
‘I’m… not much of anything.’
Though it felt awkward to say, whether male or female, in communities or official spaces, people’s views of me were very favorable.
The reactions towards me hadn’t changed much from what I had seen a week ago, so I passed.
Next, I looked for posts about Yoo Seol.
– Haaaㅠㅠ I can’t believe Seol is second [5]
– Honestly, based on skill, Yoo Seol should be first [27]
– Found past photos of our Seol!! Who wants to see [11]
– Let’s make sure Seol becomes first next time [19]
= Isn’t it suspicious? Didn’t they rig the votes? Seol being second doesn’t make sense [17]
Yoo Seol securing second place during the first ranking announcement must have shocked the community so much that her fandom was bustling with unprecedented activity, almost like a volcano about to erupt.
In terms of mentions alone, there was significantly more buzz than about me.
‘…This feels uneasy.’
And this uneasy feeling of mine reached a tipping point with the next post.
– Na Ah Ah Second Team Competition Spoiler [81]
“Ah…”
I thought everything was about to go downhill and clicked on the post.
The original author seemed to be someone who attended the second team competition just now.
[Na Ah Ah Second Team Competition Spoiler]
[I struggled to get a ticket and came to the competition with my friend. I swore an oath to maintain confidentiality but can’t keep quiet; I’m just too mad! I’m a fan of Seol, but that Seo Yoo-jin b*tch…].
Boom-.
I couldn’t bear to read the lengthy, angry post that followed and turned off my phone.
The content was obvious, I could guess without reading the rest…
And I could already imagine the furious comments that would follow.
The fandom of Yoo Seol, already in a state of anger, would undoubtedly not hold back after reading it.
“Damn…”
Watching someone I know getting stoned is not a pleasant feeling.
Especially when it’s the younger sister I’ve shared a stage with.
But the bigger issue was… that as time passed, the number of those throwing stones would only increase.
“Haaa…”
Thinking that way made my heart uneasy.
Over the past few weeks, returning from Na Ah Ah shoots, I had never felt this exhausted, but today was far worse than usual.
“……”
“……”
Noticing I was different than usual, Kang Hyung-man and Older Brother Sang-gu refrained from talking to me in the car.
Thanks to their consideration, I was able to return to the hotel quietly and comfortably.
However…
In the hotel, a great challenge awaited me that wouldn’t let me be… I still didn’t know that today’s day was not yet over.