“What? You’re saying Jung Dajun got into trouble yesterday?”
Just before our departure for Japan, I had stepped into the meeting room to discuss things with the planning and management teams. The breaking news, delivered by Kang Ichae who had come over first from the studio, made me frown, then relax again.
‘He was snoring when I came in, so I thought nothing had happened....’
When I returned to the dorm after my own schedule, Jung Dajun had already been asleep, and this morning everyone had been busy, leaving no chance to talk.
Kang Ichae, who was fiddling with his phone and tapping away at a mini-game, added indifferently,
“They said it happened after the YuYu Bank shoot, near the emergency stairwell. The other side raised his voice loud enough that plenty of people witnessed it. A music show staff panicked and broke it up.”
“Who was it?”
“TEW’s main vocal from Shining Star. Remember?”
Jung Wonha?
Why the hell is he showing up here?
“They said Dajun shot his mouth off... not sure about the details, but our company and TEW’s agency seem to have handled it before it leaked.”
I leaned back in my chair, arms crossed.
‘I thought he was proud and ambitious, but not a total idiot.’
Granted, he did have thin ears and could be swayed by a bit of flattery.
Trying to drag up my hazy memories of the Jung Wonha who used to sidle up to me so easily, I asked,
“So, what did Dajun say?”
“No idea. Haven’t talked to him yet.”
I sketched out the rough shape of the incident in my head, when Ichae finally put his phone down on the table and narrowed his eyes at me.
“Relax your face, will you? You’ll see him soon enough, just ask then.”
“...Well, true.”
I sighed, pushing up the bangs that fell into my eyes. Just then, the meeting room door opened carefully.
Through the crack, Jung Dajun peeked his face in.
“I-I’m here......”
Normally, this brat would stride in, shouting, “Jung Dajun is here!” but this time he crept over, sitting down timidly beside Kang Ichae.
“...Hey.”
“Y-Yes, y-y-yes?!”
I just called him, wondering why he was acting like this, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. That overreaction was suspicious. Even Kang Ichae eyed the maknae strangely.
I decided not to dance around.
“Dajun, I heard something happened yesterday at the YuYu Bank schedule?”
“Uh... uh, y-yeah......”
His lashes fluttered like a butterfly’s wings as he dropped his gaze.
“Spit it out.”
“It’s nothing big... Jung Wonha sunbaenim just spoke a little harshly, and I got a bit ticked off.”
“What exactly did he say?”
I wasn’t asking because I needed to hear it again from his mouth — there was something off that couldn’t be figured out just by hearing secondhand.
Across from me, I saw Ichae frown and watch closely, but I kept my attention on Dajun.
“...He said I wasn’t experienced enough to be an MC... ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) and asked if I wasn’t being a burden on the hyungs....”
“......”
“......”
...That’s it?
“W-Wait!”
Seeing my expression, Dajun flailed his fingers nervously and rushed on.
“And he also said I’d somehow turned into a ‘big idol,’ and, um, uh......”
That sounded more like praise, though?
“He said I was pretending to be innocent!”
Oddly enough, hearing him only made the situation harder to grasp.
‘He snapped over that?’
Sure, to me, Dajun always felt innocent and childish, but objectively he wasn’t like that anymore. He’d carved out his place in The Dawn, meaning he had grown into someone who wouldn’t blink over petty digs.
Once, when some idol he met in a restroom sneered, “Is WH Entertainment’s bus comfy?” Dajun just grinned and replied, “The seats are all fluffy and super cozy!” brushing it off with ease.
“And... and also!”
“What else.”
Face flushed red, Dajun slammed his palms down on the table.
“He said I only get by because Hoyun-hyung covers for me, that I can’t do anything on my own! Spouting bullshit like that!”
“Is that what pissed you off?”
“No!!”
I would’ve believed him if he said yes, but too bad.
Ichae, who had been silently resting his chin in his hand, finally spoke.
“You didn’t fire back?”
“Well, uh......”
His eyes rolled from right to left, as if hunting for an excuse. At the same time, Ichae’s lips twitched upward.
“...I mean, kinda, but... I just listened. ...Yeah.”
“...Oh~, is that so?”
He turned fully to the side, scanning Dajun up and down with a blank face. Dajun’s shoulders hunched in. But then Ichae grinned like usual, spun his chair once, and leaned his head gently on Dajun’s shoulder.
“Our maknae’s all grown up?”
I could clearly see Dajun’s back stiffen at Ichae’s sly gaze.
“So mature~. I’m proud~. As long as you handled it, that’s fine. Didn’t hurt your feelings, right?! Want hyung to blow it away for you?”
“N-No, ew, I’m fine....”
“This brat—fake gagging, really?”
Cackling, Ichae finally pulled away.
Dajun dragged his chair noisily to put distance between them, when—
“Hey guys, hi!”
“Hey.......”
Sung Jiwon and Kim Sunghyun appeared, back from vocal lessons. Sunghyun looked pale, clearly wrung dry by practice.
“Hello!”
Then Daepaseong’s planning team, including Lee Jihyun, entered with WH’s team led by Jung Seonui, plus all the management staff. The meeting at last began.
Rubbing her stomach with one hand, Jung Seonui picked up the mic and croaked in a near-dead voice,
“—We want to confirm all matters regarding The Dawn’s Japanese promotions in the second half of the year. Since this is a new concept challenge, thorough preparation is especially necessary.”
“Yessir~. Team leader~.”
“...You’ve all been practicing your instruments diligently, right?”
“Of course!”
Ichae’s bouncy replies earned a quiet sigh from Seonui, who then displayed the sales analysis chart of Japanese album figures on the projector.
Under the table, I felt Ichae’s shoe tap my shin.
When I glanced over, he folded his arms, pointed slyly at the maknae, and mouthed one word.
‘Lie.’
I turned away from his fox-like smirk and looked back at the projection screen.
Yeah. I also thought Dajun was lying.
***
[WTF The Dawn are going to Japan]
In early October, when idols were already swamped preparing year-end stages, news spread that The Dawn would head to Japan.
[Flight info dropped, The Dawn are going to Tokyo
└ Must be for a concert lol
Except... they’re releasing an album there....
└ Three comebacks this year and now Japan too... fuck, do they have two bodies each?]
[Wait WHAT?? Dropping a Japanese album timed with K-pop concert schedules?? WH, how far ahead are you planning?
└ lmao Noeul-chan really studied anime hard, your Japanese is good as hell
└ Actually I’m Japanese.
└ ...Oh. Sorry....]
But backlash wasn’t that big.
The Dawn had already built a solid domestic fandom, and though they’d had no long hiatus, they still appeared steadily through personal schedules during their rare breaks.
And this time it wasn’t some long relocation; it was only about ten days in Japan, tied to a K-pop concert, which kept fans calm.
[That’s right, our babies are gonna be Yen Princes~]
[But aren’t they already popular in Japan? Especially that black cat Hoyun-chan...
└ Cat?? ;;
└ Japanese Noeuls still insist on moe-fying Seo Hoyun as a cat...
└ Still??????
└ Yeah, stubborn as hell]
[The Japanese Noeul isolation policy... refusing to accept the bunny-moe trend from Korea, sticking stubbornly to cats... incredible.
Need a phrase to describe this...
└ ‘Because they’re Japanese Noeuls.’
└ AHAHAHAHAHA]
Then another piece of news hit the fans.
The Dawn’s documentary From Dawn to Dawn would be released in theaters.
[OMG they’re doing a theater release for From Dawn to Dawn, simultaneous in Korea and Japan!!!
Unreleased footage plus new scenes too apparently T_T]
[I’ll bring my reverse-pyramid lightstick, I swear]
[Staff: What movie would you like to book?
Me: ...Dawn to Dawn,,,
Staff: Sorry?
Me: From Dawn to Dawn... the... The Dawn... idol movie...
Staff: Ah... yes~^^
└ Why can’t you say it proudly?!
Say it loud: I came to see my Noeul’s youth, my man!!!]
[Shit, the photocards given in Korea are different from the trading cards in Japan... but both are gorgeous......]
[Guess I’ll have to scour Japanese resale apps... fuck...]
Soon after, promo clips of the documentary starring The Dawn began to pop up.
【Hello~. I’m Sung Jiwon.】
The first was Jiwon, wrapped in a cozy white knit sweater, smiling gently as he spoke fluent Japanese.
[Holy shit, his looks, voice, tone—he’s literally a Ghibli male lead. My heart’s racing, how are they sleeping on this?? Fuck fuck fuck fuck
└ Probably learned it back in his old agency. Doubt it’s a good memory for him...
└ ...I’ll go kill the former CEO]
All members introduced themselves similarly, but Kang Ichae’s stood out.
[Ichae’s Japanese accent had me crying with laughter LOOOOLLLLLLL]
[Ichae’s literally a foreigner: Arigato! Konnichiwa! LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
[Back when he first went to Japan, he only spoke English, I had no idea LOOOOOOOLLLLL]
[I’m crying now, my baby gag comedians... I love them too much]
But curiously, hardly any details about the actual Japanese schedule or songs were released.
[Why is there so little info this time? Trying to check the Japanese album and it’s like spy-level secrecy... fuck, even the teaser images are late T_T
└ Tracklist shows it’s just our Glorious Dawn Japanese ver. plus one original song.
└ Which is exactly what we’re dying for—Colors original track was legendary...]
While Noeuls were anxiously waiting for new info, The Dawn had just arrived at the airport.
“The Dawn!! Look here!”
“Sunghyun! Jiwon~!”
“Seo Hoyun!”
Flashes exploded as reporters and fans caught sight of Sunghyun and Jiwon getting out of the van.
One by one the members stepped out, and finally, the last to appear: Seo Hoyun.
He wore a black turtleneck under a navy toggle coat, wrapped snugly with a dark check scarf.
Hearing his name, he smiled brightly and pulled the scarf from his face.
“Hello.”
[The essence of an idol...]
[A god... Seo Hoyun is a god...]
Gasps filled the air as shutters clicked furiously.
None of them noticed, too absorbed in Hoyun’s face, that WH staff following behind were carefully carrying the instruments The Dawn would be using in Japan.
