<Episode 12>
Because I drank with PD Ki until dawn, my physical condition was a mess.
If it were up to me, I would’ve just collapsed onto my bed and done nothing.
I still couldn’t understand how someone his age could drink that much.
‘At least stick to one kind of alcohol. Why mix soju with beer, and then finish with whiskey…?’
If we had just stuck to soju and beer, it would’ve been fine. But toward the end, PD Ki got excited and dragged me along to drink whiskey too.
As a result, when I woke up the next morning, it felt like my head was going to split open.
So even though I had to go to work, I didn’t dare to drive and ended up taking a taxi to the company.
“Ugh, my head…”
I was holding my head when Han Suseok came in and placed a cup down on my desk with a thud.
“It’s honey water. Drink it.”
“Thanks.”
I was already thirsty, so I gulped it down without stopping.
“Ahh… I finally feel like I’m alive again.”
“Did you drink too much yesterday?”
“Yeah. Had to cater to the PD a bit. Is Spade Joker at the dorm right now?”
“They came to the practice room early this morning.”
“Really? That works out perfectly.”
As I stood up, Han Suseok naturally followed behind me.
We took the elevator down to the basement.
The place was quite messy since it was being remodeled based on suggestions from the trainees.
Carefully stepping around, I swung open the door to the practice room where Spade Joker was.
“Guys, let’s go on a variety show.”
Spade Joker froze mid-dance.
“Huh? A variety show?”
“Yeah.”
But strangely, their expressions weren’t bright.
I quickly realized why.
‘Right… last time they went on one, they were basically background props. No wonder they’re not excited.’
“This time will be different.”
I spoke quickly.
“This time, you’re the main focus.”
“The main focus?”
“Yeah. Do you know the show ‘Reverse Perspective’?”
The youngest, Leejoo, nodded cautiously.
The other members seemed unfamiliar with it.
“As the name suggests, it’s a program where people understand each other’s perspectives. They listen to each other’s stories and live through them to resolve misunderstandings.”
“Misunderstandings? What kind?”
“They’re all different… Some resolve misunderstandings with their parents from childhood, others with old school friends.”
At Sora’s question, Leejoo calmly explained.
“Then, isn’t it usually regular people who go on?”
Zen, now slightly interested, asked.
“That’s true, but celebrities appear sometimes, too. Like resolving conflicts with trainee friends, or confronting writers or PDs for apologies.”
Since Sora already knew the show well, I didn’t need to explain much.
“You’ll be the only ones featured for the whole hour. If you go on this, it’ll really help your comeback.”
“But don’t you need a story? Someone you have a misunderstanding with?” Sora asked.
The other members nodded in agreement.
“We don’t have anyone like that. There wasn’t anyone we had issues with during trainee days.”
“Yeah… We got ignored by PDs plenty of times, but nothing serious enough to call abuse.”
Juseok and Heeseo exchanged thoughts while pondering.
Honestly, it was strange that they didn’t think of me.
‘Shouldn’t I be the first person that comes to mind?’
“Guys.”
“Yes.”
“I’m right here, you know.”
The practice room fell silent instantly.
“…You, sir?” Cain looked at me, startled.
“Yeah. Be honest… don’t you resent me? No, that’s not the right question. You’ve got a lot you want to say to me, don’t you?”
At my blunt question, their faces turned pale.
“W-well… sir…”
Cain couldn’t even speak properly, so I lightly patted his shoulder to reassure him.
“It’s fine. They say people even curse kings behind their backs. It’s normal. More importantly, filming is tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?!”
“Yeah. So first, let’s align what we’re going to say.”
“Align… what we’re going to say?”
“Yeah.”
Since it’s a broadcast, the writers and PD will try to steer things in a provocative direction.
So we need to set boundaries.
Lines we absolutely won’t cross.
“The broadcast is basically the day after tomorrow.”
Their faces turned pale again.
***
Spade Joker sat in the waiting room with a stiff expression.
It wasn’t like they were being punished, but they were all sitting upright on the sofa in silence.
Knock knock.
At the sound, Cain loudly answered, “Yes!”
The door opened, and it was their manager, Kim Jawook.
“I bought coffee. Have some.”
“Thank you.”
He handed out coffee to the members.
“You must be really nervous.”
“Yeah.”
To ease their tension, Kim Jawook kept talking.
“You don’t have to be funny or perform. Just be honest. There’s nothing you have to do well.”
It was their first time being the main focus of a one-hour broadcast, so their hearts felt like they might burst out of their chests.
Still, they tried to act calm.
Kim Jawook noticed and kept talking to relax them.
“We’re starting filming! Please come to the set!”
At the staff’s call, Spade Joker jumped up and headed to the studio.
“Everyone’s here?”
There sat John Raid Lombardi, already styled with broadcast hair and makeup.
“Sir, you look like a celebrity.”
Kim Jawook said in admiration.
It wasn’t flattery.
With his tanned skin, gentle features, tall height, and solid build, combined with hair and makeup, he looked like a Western actor.
“You already had strong features, so I thought you were handsome, but now you really look like a celebrity.”
“Thanks.”
Unlike Spade Joker, John Raid Lombardi seemed completely relaxed.
Anyone who didn’t know better would think he was the celebrity.
“You don’t seem nervous at all.”
“No. We’re just telling our story.”
Though he had experience appearing on broadcasts through repeated regressions, no one knew that, so they were all amazed by his composure.
“Alright, we’ll begin recording.”
With the PD’s words, filming began.
“Since you can’t see each other, please speak comfortably.”
A thin partition divided the studio.
Spade Joker sat on one side, John Raid Lombardi on the other.
“You can say whatever you want.”
When the silence dragged on, Lombardi spoke first.
“Ah…”
But the silence continued.
“…Sir.”
“Yeah.”
“Do you remember what you said when we first met?”
“I do.”
Zen asked, and Lombardi answered immediately.
“Why did you say that?”
“You’re curious?”
“Yes.”
Lombardi paused, tapping his fingers lightly on his thigh.
“Where should I start… I’ve always been interested in K-pop, even before I really got into it in the U.S. Probably because I’m half Korean.”
And so, his honest story began.
“I became curious about Korea and its people, and at some point, it became something very important to me. So I decided to go to Korea, my mother’s country… and raise idols.”
“You never thought about becoming an idol yourself?” Juseok suddenly asked.
Lombardi laughed in disbelief.
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“How would I be an idol? I can’t sing or dance. And I don’t have the face for it either. Anyway, back to the point… I came to Korea with that dream, so it wasn’t like I wasn’t serious. But I lost my way a bit and couldn’t keep my promise back then.”
It wasn’t exactly comforting, but it was enough to answer Zen’s question.
At that moment, a writer raised a sketchbook.
[Please tell us what the CEO said to you.]
“The CEO told us he would shine a light on us, so we should try to shine brightly. That’s why we trusted him and signed. But after debuting, everything was completely different from what we expected.”
Silence filled the studio again.
[Please explain what you mean by ‘losing your way.’]
To break the silence, the writer raised another prompt.
“Losing my way… I came to Korea full of ambition, but things didn’t go as planned. I kept failing, and it felt like everything went blank. So I ended up doing things I shouldn’t have.”
With the writer’s guidance, the filming continued smoothly.
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