<Nice to meet you!> stage competition site.
[Weekend afternoon delight! Stars meet in a collaboration for the ages—<Nice to meet you!>’s stage begins shortly!]
The MC read the years-refined script smoothly. From the audience, polite cheers and applause cascaded.
[This competition’s theme is ‘Millennial 2000’! Stages are styled around the 2000s.]
[Each contestant selected an artist from their preferred genre to collaborate—let’s see what stages were born!]
Then the MC quickly summarized the voting rules.
It’s simple. If you enjoyed the performance, press the button!
A routine line for every recording, yet this time many in the audience heard it for the first time.
‘I can’t believe I’m here.’
‘Thanks, Jaehyun. Taking a step back to honor duty.’
They’d all applied after hearing Cheongryeo would appear. In other words, many VTIC fans who weren’t regular viewers.
And that was a double-edged sword for this contest.
If Cheongryeo failed to deliver a first-place-worthy stage yet won by audience vote, controversy would erupt.
But the fans seated there hardly worried.
‘It’s Jaehyun, after all.’
Years of fandom build unshakable faith.
VTIC—especially Cheongryeo—had never disappointed.
[Now, the curtain rises on that special stage.]
At last, season 7’s third themed contest began.
Waaa—
With courteous cheers, singers and masters stepped onstage.
Here, “singers” meant established artists favored by older viewers. No boy idols like VTIC.
‘Oh.’
Since the fields were so different, Cheongryeo’s fans watched without competitive tension.
‘This is nice.’
‘They’re all talented.’
Pure praise flowed.
There were some daring stages. An opera singer and a veteran rapper performing a mid-2000s musical hit felt refreshingly hip, and a circus master with a dance artist, though slightly discordant, left an impression.
‘Wow!’
Especially for younger VTIC fans, who rarely watched this show and didn’t expect its tried-and-true “audience-pleaser” structure, it felt novel.
They imagined Cheongryeo’s stage.
‘Who would Jaehyun pair with?’
‘If it were an opera singer, that’d be amazing.’
Sometimes due to scheduling they paired singers together, but nobody thought Cheongryeo would be one of them.
‘To outshine these, he can’t slip up....’
A few fans even quietly worried he’d have to be flawless.
Time passed, and it was the sixth stage—second to last.
The MC finally opened the awaited announcement.
[This stage’s guest is... South Korea’s global KPOP artist, VTIC’s Cheongryeo!]
Waaa!!
Aaah!
From the moment “global” was announced, the fans’ anticipation peaked.
Even non-fan older viewers responded well; everyone had heard VTIC’s name on the news or YouTube.
Fame brings expectations!
Eyes gauging how well he’d perform. Amid that adrenaline, the MC kept pace.
[And Cheongryeo’s chosen collaboration partner is....]
A brief pause.
Just as the audience’s curiosity reached its peak...
A thunderclap.
[Korea’s national idol! TeSTAR’s main vocalist, Park Mundae!]
“...??”
“...?!”
Huh?
Unlike the older crowd’s “Oh, two young idols together~,” Cheongryeo’s fans gasped in disbelief.
Why was TeSTAR here...?
‘Cheongryeo?’
‘Hey, Jaehyun!’
Some fans screamed that a recorder-playing kindergartner would’ve been better.
[Now, let’s meet them! Collaboration, start!]
Before fans could settle their thoughts, the MC’s cry launched the stage!
Lights pierced the darkness.
“......!”
Fans instinctively held their breath.
But... no singer appeared.
A single standing mic stood in the spotlight at the edge.
Hooooo—
A short breath of wind sounded.
Amid that silence, a familiar piano riff filled the air.
That well-known accompaniment. Then a minor-key chorus cut through the hush.
Wrapping cold yet comforting warmth around my cheeks
And you
A mid-2000s sentimental hip-hop hit, remade with a famous female soloist’s feature part.
That feature part began, carried on a refined male voice.
Um, umm-
A lonely hum.
Close to the original’s bittersweet reflection on love after farewell.
“.......”
The singer wasn’t Cheongryeo.
‘Park Mundae...?’
Yet the clear, refreshing tone of his minor-key delivery drew the audience in.
Soft piano and humming echoed gently into the seats.
Then the key shifted major and the original had a faster band section and rap...
“...!”
The note dropped more heavily.
Thud.
A graceful, somber piano beat anchored the moment. The tempo slowed—deliberately lazy, dark—nearly unsettling.
And then a figure emerged.
Our yearning hearts
“...!!”
Cheongryeo!
Wearing a head mic, he strode in from the edge. His presence seemed to fill the stage.
Black slacks and a navy stage shirt looked striking.
‘Aaah!’
Even as muffled cheers erupted, some viewers tilted their heads.
‘Huh?’
The song Cheongryeo sang.
The melody was familiar—but it wasn’t the “Snow falls in my winter” track.
. Another 2000s hit by a sexy female soloist.
Unlike the original’s fast techno-dance tempo, this cover moved slowly over heavy accompaniment, unfolding with choreography.
Pure contemporary dance or whacking hints matched Cheongryeo’s powerful build.
A backup dancer mirrored moves, but only added flair.
Lighting shifts, unwavering live vocals, meticulous dynamics—all delivered catharsis.
The stage felt sealed. His stage-seasoned ease held every eye.
He distilled the original’s glamour and sexiness into a much slower, static, weighty tempo, infusing raw artistry. The inherent cheesiness of an old pop hit vanished completely.
‘He’s insane.’
‘I wish he’d just gone solo!’
‘Why is Park Mundae in front...?’
Fans surrendered to the performance’s flow.
Ignite love’s flame
Summer night
The leisurely yet weighty performance drove the build—verse and chorus flew by.
Music paused.
Cheongryeo clicked his heels and walked to the standing mic at the opposite edge.
“.......”
Fans held their breath again, awaiting the next climax.
Suddenly, from the other side, someone stepped into the spotlight.
“...!”
Park Mundae.
With neatly styled blond hair, he grabbed the mic at the far edge.
The accompaniment resumed.
Even when spring comes in my heart
“...?”
The backing track from Cheongryeo’s seamlessly continued under Park Mundae’s melody.
‘Oh...?’
Because the two songs shared mid-2000s compositional grammar, they linked perfectly.
Yet the moods and lyrics contrasted sharply—summer love against eternal winter’s farewell—creating a surreal narrative.
Eternal winter’s warmth
His lonely voice strengthened and rose with the music, reaching a natural climax without showy riffs.
Wrapping cold yet comforting warmth around my cheeks
That high note soared effortlessly—elegant, beautiful.
Then the lyrics and melody intertwined again.
In summer night
Cutting back to Cheongryeo’s track. The two alternated their respective songs as if sharing one piece.
At the final high note, two central spotlights blazed giant beams.
The two moved center stage.
“...!”
Together, they matched the build, mirroring choreography.
Hot, ecstatic moment
Voices overlapped as lyrics mixed.
(In summer night)
They switched songs mid-line and flowed into each other.
(Eternal winter’s warmth)
And in the last bar—
They stopped in mirrored pose, faces to face, then harmonized to lift the music.
You, you, u- uu, umm, umumm,
Strings swelled.
Choreography hit its climax.
The humming of two melodies formed exquisite harmonies as their mirrored movements wove complex partner work—crossed feet, angled torsos, shoulder grips—filling empty space with precision like circus artistry.
Every seemingly smooth move required absolute muscular control. And to hum perfectly in live ultra-high pitch while moving—unreal.
‘Wow.’
“.......”
Eyes fixed as if drawn in.
Only a performer with profound KPOP dance mastery could craft such a stage.
‘Ah....’
Some fans now understood why Cheongryeo chose Park Mundae.
‘I get it now.’
‘He’d pick an idol if he wanted this.’
But a misconception remained.
In reality, Park Mundae couldn’t solo that climax with his current stats. Yet through sheer practice volume, he’d learned and perfectly mimicked the thirty-second routine alongside Cheongryeo.
And with someone who’d spent decades ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ refining effective teaching methods personally drilling every move in, even an impossible level of synchronization became momentarily achievable.
Then, atop that “unreal” sync, they soared with a short, precise high-pitch harmony over the dramatic accompaniment.
I’ve waited, you know
Catharsis!
Back to back, bathed in brass, they faced the audience. The stage that began in winter ended in summer night.
Thud!
“.......”
The stage ended there.
An idol-style framework infused with artful composition suited to this show. That atmosphere! And the masterful rearrangement, live vocals, acrobatic choreography. The essence of performance.
‘They tore it up.’
‘Insane.’
Waaaah!!
Scream-like cheers filled the hall—not just from fans, but a visceral reaction to the stage.
[That was truly an incredible performance!]
Even the MC’s praise sounded heartfelt.
Soon the two onstage smiled faintly, bowed politely several times toward the audience, and returned to their seats.
Though voting was next, the result felt already decided.
Fans knew.
‘This one’s a guaranteed vote.’
Even if aired later, no one would blame Cheongryeo for taking first place.
That certainty electrified the audience.
Yet most fans in attendance still harbored confusion.
‘How did that end up with Park Mundae??’
‘What kind of song choice was that??’
And those questions would soon be answered.
In the weekend’s broadcast, the process of their pairing would receive airtime.
