I’m a Genius Idol but my Passive is Sunfish – Chapter 23

Author: LyraDhani

***

Now, social media had become a part of her life as much as breathing. Boksoong was in the middle of a wise fangirl life, looking at the posts that had flowed into her timeline.

And in the midst of it, something strange caught Boksoong’s eye.

– Neoyeon and Heenya are fighting

‘Neoyeon? Heenya?’

Are they talking about Yooyeon and Baekya? The puzzled Boksoong checked the other person’s profile picture.

An egg-shaped profile picture. It was the default setting that was automatically set when you created an account. An ‘egg account,’ as they called it.

She had only followed friends who had profiles of Baekya and the DASE members, so it definitely wasn’t one of her friends.

It seemed that one of her friends had re-tweeted it, and it had flowed to her.

‘But fighting?’

Was this why reporters got called trash journalists yet still insisted on pulling out provocative headlines?

Boksoong felt a strong urge to click it.

“Right. I’ll judge for myself.”

An odd confidence welled up inside her that she wouldn’t be shaken. And so, Boksoong opened Pandora’s box.

The egg account’s timeline had quite a few posts. Mixed in between the account’s own tweets were frequent retweets from other egg accounts.

– Nat-dol hasn’t even been around that long and already there’s a discord rumor?

└ It’s obviousㅠ The center and the popular member are having a power struggle

– Heenya was being super self-conscious lol I feel so bad for him when I see the fansite photos

– V-yeon must have a temper. Look at how the other members can’t even stand up straight around him.

‘Nat-dol’ must be another slang for DASE, and ‘V-yeon’ for Yooyeon.

No one told her, but she could tell by feel. It was a moment where her first-grade reading comprehension skills in the language arts section shone.

But as she looked, she started to get worried. She had resolved not to be swayed, but her heart sank at the words ‘discord rumor.’

‘My peach has to walk only on a flower path…!’

And discord rumors at that!

The members all seemed close, and among them, Baekya looked especially close with Yuyeon.

‘There’s no way the chemistry they showed on the visual radio was just for business!’

For the two, who were called the ‘chick-ariz’ among fans after the radio broadcast, to be having a power struggle because they were jealous of each other. It was ridiculous.

Boksoong quickly returned to her timeline. She felt like her mentality would be shaken if she kept looking.

– 2X0130 Muse outing #Baekya #Jihan (Baekya Jihan.jpg)

– Is our baby very tired? He looks especially worn out todayㅠ

– Peach’s commute! He looks a little downㅜㅜ (Baekya.jpg)

– 2X0130 Peach and Rabbit’s Music Stay commute (Baekya Minseong.jpg)

But as she looked, there really wasn’t a single picture taken with Yooyeon. On their way to work, and during their outings in the middle. Baekya and Yooyeon were always at a distance.

Before she realized it, Boksoong was deeply worried.

Fine. Since she’d already opened Pandora’s box, she decided to search ‘Heenya.’

And the search results that poured in were more than she had expected. The persistent Boksoong found a story that was presumed to be the reason the two had fought.

– Not a discord rumor, just a common high school boy hierarchy sorting

“Hierarchy sorting?”

Boksoong’s head became even more dizzy.

***

At that same moment, the supposed subjects of the discord rumor.

Baekya, who had bought lunch for the members with Jihan, approached Yooyeon and spoke to him.

“Hyung. Eat this.”

“Hmph! How dare you to your hyungnim.”

“…Please eat.”

“Alright.”

The way he took the sandwich was endlessly arrogant. There was no hesitation in Yooyeon’s actions. The only one who was getting worked up at his swaggering attitude was Baekya.

“Hey, but you didn’t use honorifics to me either, did you?”

Baekya, feeling wronged, protested.

“Ahem. I said I would forgive you with my generous heart if you served me as hyungnim for a month.”

Counting their trainee days before debut, it had been about five months. To think that Baekya, who he had thought was older than him, was actually a ‘same-aged friend’ whose birthday was a whole month later.

It was true that Yooyeon had grabbed the back of his neck at that. But it hadn’t gone as far as a discord, as the rumors had implicitly spread.

It was a situation where a mutual agreement had been made that if Baekya served Yooyeon as hyungnim for a month, he would forget about the past and they would go back to being friends.

Of course, at this time, Yooyean had tried to subtly get on the same level as Yulmu and Jihan, but he had failed due to their fortress-like resistance.

“Oh ho. If you have a complaint, let’s hear it.”

But the guilty are silent.

‘Patience. Patience.’

Baekya shook his head with his mouth shut.

“Not at all, hyungnim. Please enjoy your meal, and if there’s anything you’re uncomfortable with, please just call me anytime.”

Baekya retreated with small steps. And the members whispered as they looked at the two of them.

“Are they filming a historical drama…? What’s with their tone? They don’t seem like hyung and dongsaeng, but like a king and a slave.”

Yulmu glanced at Baekya and Yooyeon with a sour expression.

“Leave them alone.”

Just in case Yulmu ruined the moment. Jihan shoved the unwrapped sandwich into his mouth as if to shut him up.

“Yeah. Isn’t it admirable? They’re settling it without fighting.”

Minseong looked on fondly, like a grandfather watching his grandchildren perform tricks.

“They both talk like grandpas.”

Cheong looked at Yooyeon and Baekya with a strange expression.

And so, contrary to some fans’ worries, it was a peaceful waiting room. In its own way, it was quite harmonious.

But then, the waiting room door burst open and someone ran in. It was Namkyung, who had been urgently called by the staff on his way back from an outing with Baekya and Jihan.

“Baekya! Where’s Baekya, Baekya!”

An excited Namkyung frantically looked for Baekya.

“Me? Why are you…”

Startled, Baekya awkwardly stood up from his seat. The other members looked flustered too—it was the first time they’d ever seen Namkyung this worked up.

“Hyung? What’s wrong?”

Did something bad happen? Minseong quickly approached with a stiff face. Then Namkyung, grabbing Minseong’s shoulder, shouted.

“An MC suddenly bailed, so they’re looking for a substitute, and the PD wants to see Baekya!”

What?!

The members’ gazes instantly turned to Baekya.

“M-me, why me…?”

Baekya froze on the spot.

“Why else? They’re probably calling you to ask you to be a special MC! Let’s go. Hurry up and get up.”

Namkyung made a fuss, saying that even though it was just for a day, this was a huge opportunity.

The members who heard the news together also gathered around Baekya, saying he had to do it.

“Wait a minute! I-I’ve never done anything like this before,”

“Is that really what matters right now?! Do it! Say yes, no matter what!”

Yulmu smacked Baekya hard on the back.

“Gah!”

Baekya staggered in surprise.

Yooyeon, who was nearby, also caught him and made a deal.

“Hey. If you do this, I’ll shorten the ‘hyung-nim’ thing to just today. Deal?”

“…One day?”

He was tempted for a moment, but it was still burdensome.

‘It’s a live broadcast!’

Better to endure a month of calling him hyung than risk this. Baekya shook his head vigorously.

“No. I can’t. What if I make a mistake?”

The sunfish had many worries. Baekya tried to pass it off, saying they should send another member instead.

“Are you kidding? The PD specifically asked for you. Our DASE’s official cutie!”

Yulmu gently scratched under Baekya’s chin. But he was immediately stopped by Jihan. And Minseong, who had been watching the situation quietly, stepped up.

“Baekya. Let’s do it.”

“Hyung… I really don’t have the confidence.”

“No? You can do it. Just think of DASE.”

For rookies, the rule was simple: exposure first, no matter what. You needed recognition before people would even consider listening to your music.

For a split second, Minseong’s eyes gleamed dangerously.

‘…A wild rabbit?’

Startled, Baekya took a step back, and this time, a chest bumped into his back. Cheong, with a blank face, was looking down at him.

“Are you really not going to do it?”

Cheong meant nothing by it, but the one on the spot perceived it differently. Especially if they were in a disadvantageous situation.

Faced with those cold, three-white eyes, Baekya’s face crumpled.

‘Mom… these guys are scary…’

The sunfish was terrified.

* * *

[Suyeon: Live MusicSTAY! Hello~ This is MC Suyeon.]

A live broadcast began with the PD’s cue sign. The music show’s MC desk, usually occupied by two people, had only one today.

Suryun opened the show with a regretful greeting, explaining that her co-host couldn’t be with her for health reasons. Then she turned to her side, saying that for today she had invited a special MC.

[Suyeon: They’re the hottest group these days, right? I’m with Mr. Baekya, the biting heart peach you just want to take a bite of~]

[Baekya: Hello! I’m DASE’s 100% sweetness peach who has appeared on MusicSTAY. This is Baekya.]

Inside DASE’s makeshift waiting room.

Minseong, who had briefly gotten his phone back from Namkyung, was watching live TV.

“Calling himself 100% sweetness. Ah, so funny, cough.”

Yulmu, who had snorted from laughing so hard, cleared his throat and calmed down.

When Baekya had been dragged off earlier, trembling and insisting he couldn’t do it, he’d looked terrified. but now he was pulling it off just fine.

Suyeon, who was hosting the show with him, was a member of ID’s girl group Rose Day, who had debuted 4 years ago. Like Shiyoon, she was DASE’s direct senior.

“He’s doing great!”

How could he kick away an opportunity that had come like this? Namkyung, who had practically hoisted Baekya onto his back and dragged him out of the waiting room, also watched Baekya on the screen with a pleased smile.

Right before he went on the live broadcast, Namkyung had asked Baekya if he knew what was good about being a rookie.

The sunfish had answered, trembling, asking if there was anything good about being a rookie.

「Baekya, no one expects a rookie to be good from the start. A rookie making a mistake? That’s okay.」

Of course, it would be better if he didn’t.

「So all you have to do is do your best and come down. You said you were going to be a genius idol, didn’t you?」

He must have heard it from Dongman, such an embarrassing word came out at the end, but Baekya definitely felt better. And so, Baekya was thrown in front of the camera alone.

[Baekya: Ah, it’s cold~ Sunbaenim. But it’s so cold here.]

Baekya, wearing a fur jacket with fluffy white fur, rubbed his arms.

Hoo~ He even pretended to blow on his hands.

For someone who had been whining, he was doing pretty well.

[Suyeon: It’s okay, Mr. Baekya~ It’ll get warm soon once MusicSTAY starts. Hot, hot! There are some very hot, hot stages waiting for us~]

[Baekya: Then let’s meet them quickly! I’m so, so excited!]

He bounced in place, looking like he was pleading with Suyeon.

Fans’ hearts couldn’t take it, seeing Baekya suddenly appear as a special MC with no warning, showering everyone with cute antics.

– The premium peach, Han Baekya, who can do it all: singing, cuteness, and hosting

– Suddenly making our peach a special MCㅠㅠ thank you, MusicStay

– The cuteness is so cute and prettyㅠㅠ He’s shy but still doing everything he has to do(Baekya screenshot.jpg)

– I’ll bet 100 won that the writer poured their personal feelings into the script lol