IKC C5

Chapter 5

 

“Ah, fuck… I’m gonna lose my mind.”

 

My head was spinning with confusion, a throbbing headache starting to bloom. I ruffled my own hair with one hand in frustration when Jeongmin’s voice came through the receiver.

 

―Hyung, you don’t really go on community sites much, right? I’ll send you a link, check it.

 

The moment I opened the post Jeongmin sent, my jaw fell open.

 

**Title: Seong Sehan’s friend is a G Entertainment male idol trainee in a debut group ㅇㅇ**

 

The photos started with a close-up, then a half-body shot, and finally a full-body photo. A bead of cold sweat rolled down my temple as I scrolled through them.

 

And—shit!—there were dozens of comments beneath. My finger kept faltering as I read through the scrolling feed.

 

**Title: Seong Sehan’s friend is a G Entertainment male idol trainee in a debut group ㅇㅇ**

 

**Post Content:** He’s expressionless, but he gives off an icy aura lolol

 

**Comments (9):**

 

– I heard in real life, he’s so intimidating people can’t even talk to him.

– Isn’t it okay to mention his agency? It’s Global Ent., Kim Taegyeong. If that kid debuts, game over.

– His physique is insane. Is he the same height as Sehan?

– ⌎ Nah, it only looks that way because of his proportions. He’s in the early 180s.

– He’s got a whole narrative with Sehan lolol. Imagine the synergy if they appear together kekeke.

– ⌎ Don’t link them lol. Sehan left Global, they don’t even contact each other. He just showed up at his dorm and Sehan let him in, that’s all.

– ⌎ Are you Seong Sehan himself?

– ⌎ Go watch the video of Sehan sprinting over.

– ⌎ Talk about being a drama queen lol.

 

I couldn’t even finish all the comments before I slammed the tab closed. Was it weak of me to feel like I’d just been thrust naked into the streets?

 

I wanted to deny it, but my heart was thundering so hard it felt like it’d burst out of my chest.

 

It wasn’t like the fear I’d felt after debut, when no one paid attention to us and I thought we’d fade into obscurity.

 

This time, my sweaty palms clenched the phone tight.

 

I had traveled back one year specifically to prevent Sehan’s death. And right now, I was still a trainee who hadn’t debuted yet.

 

Which meant—I hadn’t failed yet.

 

“Huugh…!”

 

I smothered the sound trying to tear itself out of my throat with my hand.

 

This was it. The chance to fix the most important turning point in my life…!

 

Unable to contain the tremor in my chest, I buried my face in my palms. My eyes burned hot beneath my tightly shut lids.

 

“I…!”

 

I would never lose Seong Sehan again. And I would never repeat the same failures, not this time.

 

*

 

As soon as I stepped into the dorm, our manager hyung was waiting at the entrance to scold me.

 

“Lee Taegyeong, are you planning to keep doing whatever you damn well please? Are the dorm rules a joke to you?”

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

I bent at the waist in a deep, respectful bow, admitting fault.

 

“Something urgent came up, I couldn’t help it. Next time I’ll ask Geonwoo-hyung first.”

 

Geonwoo-hyung was sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed, but he wouldn’t even look at me. Meanwhile, Jeongmin sat beside him nervously, gauging hyung’s mood.

 

“Hyung, Taegyeong-hyung even hailed a taxi to come back quickly. You know how stingy he is—if he took a cab, it must’ve been serious.”

 

I needed to smooth over Geonwoo-hyung’s mood or there’d be no conversation. But right now, I couldn’t settle down. I was too restless.

 

When I sat quietly on the sofa, hyung finally flicked his gaze at me.

 

“Congratulations, Taegyeong.”

 

“…Huh?”

 

“You blew up online in just a couple hours. Don’t tell me… you went after Sehan banking on his popularity rubbing off on you? If so, that’s ballsy as hell—I’d almost respect it.”

 

“Why? Shouldn’t I?”

 

Hyung’s head whipped toward me, eyes wide. My answer had evidently floored him.

 

“Taegyeong… don’t you have any pride? After everything—he betrayed us and left!”

 

“Geonwoo-hyung.”

 

For the first time in ages, I met his eyes head-on. When our album flopped, we could hardly look at each other, each side too wounded.

 

“Hyung, I don’t care about pride when it comes to Sehan anymore. Living that way only left me full of regrets.”

 

“Taegyeong, what do you mean by that…”

 

“Hyung, I need to tell you something.”

 

Our words turning serious, Jeongmin gulped down his saliva and moved toward Sungwook-hyung at the edge of the sofa. Sungwook-hyung, strict with rules, never applied the same standards to Geonwoo.

 

Because Geonwoo was the CEO’s only nephew. Everyone danced around him—everyone except Sehan.

 

“Hyung, I don’t think we can afford to keep delaying our debut.”

 

After Sehan left the company, we hit setback after setback. It wasn’t until that late October that we finally debuted with our mini-album.

 

“What…?”

 

Geonwoo-hyung’s eyes went wide like a startled rabbit. Clearly, he hadn’t expected me to bring up debut.

 

“Hyung, I think we should stick to our original plan and debut as a vocal group. We don’t need to copy Perfect Puzzle with a six-member system.”

 

Ah. Shit. Wrong words.

 

“You little—Lee Taegyeong…!”

 

Hyung all but leapt at me, so I quickly scooted closer, grabbing his hand.

 

“Hyung, you’ve already written a song that matches our color. If we prepare with that, we can drop an album before April, right?”

 

“You—so what, you’re saying you hate the song I’m working on now?”

 

Hyung tore his hand out of mine and surged to his feet, glaring down at me, face red with rage.

 

I bit my lip. I couldn’t tell him that his “new composition” was just a rip-off reframing of one of Sehan’s hits—that no matter how he twisted it, we’d still flop because everyone could recognize its origins.

 

“Taegyeong.”

 

At last, Sungwook-hyung stepped in, his voice firm.

 

“You’re in no position to be talking about debut schedules. When your trainee contract ends in autumn, even *you* don’t know what’ll happen to you.”

 

His subtle gaslighting used to scare me. But now? I had bigger things to worry about. I stood at a crossroads in life itself.

 

“Sigh, Taegyeong. I’ll overlook what happened today. Go to your room and reflect for a while.”

 

As Sungwook-hyung’s voice hardened, Geonwoo let out a breath, soothing himself—and me by extension.

 

“…Haa.”

 

The tightness in my chest left me sighing endlessly. I was the only one panicking. What chance did a lowly trainee have for his opinions to matter?

 

And then, my phone buzzed in my jacket pocket.

 

A message from Sehan.

 

[The shoot will probably run past midnight. I’ll come find you even if it’s late—wait for me.]

 

“Taegyeong, how the hell could you have stayed away from him this long, when you’re that attached?”

 

Geonwoo-hyung sneered, but it didn’t sting. I understood all too well the complicated emotions he harbored for Sehan.

 

“Hyung.”

 

I pocketed my phone and rose from the sofa, facing him squarely.

 

There was one thing I knew for certain—I couldn’t just sit back idle.

 

“I think… no, I believe we have to debut before April.”

 

“What? Taegyeong—”

 

“And also, hyung.”

 

I lifted my hand, silencing him mid-sentence. His eyes sharpened at my boldness.

 

“You know that idol survival program starting on MVT in May, right? The CEO said if we’d debuted on schedule last year, he would’ve had us participate.”

 

“Uh, uh…”

 

Hyung faltered. Meanwhile, Jeongmin shot to his feet in surprise. I glanced at him briefly, then pressed on.

 

“Honestly? I think we’d do amazing on that show.”

 

That survival show, filmed in late May, had been all the rage back then. Even teams that didn’t win grabbed attention, bolstered their fandoms, and carved a place for themselves.

 

Back then, when I hadn’t even touched a professional stage, I’d only drowned in jealousy and inferiority watching from the sidelines.

 

“Hyung, please—ask the CEO to put us in the survival lineup.”

 

He stared at me, completely overwhelmed.

 

I already knew. Gaining even a single fan was hellishly hard. If we let this opportunity slip by, we’d regret it forever.

 

“Otherwise… I’ll quit Global and give up on debuting here.”

 

The living room froze in silence, the air turning brittle.

 

Geonwoo’s lips only mouthed soundlessly, his face struck dumb with shock. Jeongmin stared between us, pale as a sheet.

 

“You crazy bastard! Lee Taegyeong!”

 

It was Sungwook-hyung’s furious roar that shattered the silence.