The S-Rank Paparazzi Reincarnates as an Idol Chapter 91

Chapter 91

 

The preparations for their debut song were steadily approaching the final stage.

“Everyone, we’re finally taking our album cover photos!”

In the middle of their nonstop schedule, the day had finally come to shoot the album jacket.

As always, the members spoke energetically toward the self-content camera.

“I hope the photos turn out well. I’m half worried and half excited.”

I added a comment of my own toward the camera.

“I’ll do my best and come back with photos that all of you will be satisfied with!”

‘The album really isn’t far off now.’

For the debut album that would be released soon, we had once again woken up at dawn and started moving.

“Since it’s a photo with all six of us together, please look forward to the cover photos!”

The members kept talking to the camera even inside the moving van.

‘They’re all really hardworking. Probably because they’re so desperate for their dreams.’

Fortunately, none of the members were the type to slack off during team activities.

A few of them struggled with the overwhelming schedule, but whenever that happened, I secretly fed them mayonnaise to forcibly restore their stamina.

‘There’s only half a bottle of mayonnaise left now.’

Even though I was using it sparingly, six grown men were living together, so it was disappearing fast.

‘Hopefully it’ll last until the promotion period.’

Since it came from a random gacha, there was no guarantee I’d get mayonnaise again the next time I rolled.

So I had to conserve it as much as possible.

Just as I was wondering how best to make use of the mayonnaise stored in the refrigerator…

“Everyone, we’ve arrived at the studio.”

At the manager’s words from the driver’s seat, the van came to a smooth stop in the parking lot.

“Yes!”

“Manager, thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you.”

“Alright. We’re short on time, so please move immediately!”

“Yes.”

Contrary to my initial concerns, the manager was actually quite competent.

At first, I’d been wary, thinking he might look down on us because we were rookies, but the way he treated the members wasn’t bad.

‘The problem is that he’s taking care of six people all by himself.’

As time passed, it became increasingly noticeable that the manager was losing weight.

‘The company still doesn’t seem interested in hiring another manager.’

Because of that, there were times when he clearly seemed overwhelmed by having to be responsible for all six of us.

‘I’ll have to bring this up to the company later.’

With our debut right around the corner, though, I decided to focus on the issue right in front of me first.

Following the manager, we arrived at the studio entrance.

The moment the heavy door opened, the atmosphere changed.

The pristine white walls and ceiling were covered with densely packed lighting equipment.

‘I’ve never seen this many lights in my life.’

Beneath them sat several different cameras.

Those cameras would capture the cover photos that would become the face of our debut song.

“Everyone, nice to meet you.”

A man with prominent dark circles under his eyes raised a hand from beside the camera.

“Hello!”

“We are the debuting Lucy Star Boys!”

“We look forward to working with you today!”

True to their gentle natures, the members politely bowed toward the photo director and staff.

“Lucy Star Boys, we don’t have much time, so let’s begin shooting right away.”

“Yes!”

Following the photo director’s instructions, we quickly took our places in front of the camera.

Since we’d come straight from the salon to the studio, there was very little additional preparation needed.

“We’ll start with the group cover photos first.”

While the makeup artists and stylists rapidly adjusted our outfits from the side, the photo director continued explaining.

“Since your debut concept is refreshing and youthful, we’ll be shooting three different outfits today.”

“Yes.”

“The first concept is school uniforms.”

The staff members had been particularly enthusiastic about the school-uniform concept during company meetings.

One executive had especially insisted that if an idol group was debuting, a school-uniform concept was practically mandatory at least once.

‘Better to wear it while we’re still young than years later.’

It matched the fresh concept well, and given that the survival show’s afterglow still lingered, it was a perfectly understandable choice.

To avoid overlapping too much with ‘Star Picking 5’, however, the uniforms had been designed to be as simple and clean as possible.

“Then let’s begin the shoot.”

The moment the photo director finished speaking, the makeup artists and stylists quickly stepped aside.

For this school-uniform concept, each member’s styling had been customized to fit their individual image.

Even though everyone wore the same uniform, their personalities stood out clearly.

‘I think mine is the simplest.’

To emphasize a refreshing image, I wore nothing more than a dress shirt and necktie, with a clean, uncluttered appearance.

‘Well, it’s neat. I like it.’

Standing beside me, Seo Hayul was dressed in what could be considered the textbook school-uniform look.

Yet somehow he still gave off the aura of a delinquent.

‘His personality is actually really gentle. It’s kind of fascinating.’

As expected of the visual center, Yoo Hoseung naturally drew attention.

His strawberry-milk-colored light pink hair especially stood out.

‘Being handsome really lets you pull off pink hair naturally.’

The pink knit sweater layered over his shirt further emphasized his cute youngest-member image.

Rua wore a school jacket over his shirt and added accessories for flair.

He kept saying he looked like a prince, and honestly, it was hard to disagree.

‘Blond hair and blue eyes are basically cheat codes.’

Finally, my second favorite member, Kim Sunyoo, wore a cardigan over his shirt along with round glasses.

He looked like an exemplary class president, yet somehow gave off an elegant and sophisticated impression.

‘The stylist really knows what they’re doing.’

Their styling drew out each member’s strengths so well that even a common school-uniform concept felt distinctive.

“Lucy Star Boys, please line up with Yoo Hoseung and Seo Hayul in the center!”

“Yes!”

Naturally, the team’s visual center belonged in the middle.

With the younger, still-growing members placed at the center due to their relatively shorter height, we lined up in a row.

Click. Click.

Only the sound of the camera shutter echoed through the quiet studio.

Each flash seemed to split the air.

“Good. Everyone, smile!”

“Yes!”

Click. Click.

“Great. Keep that expression, and this time let’s try a different pose.”

The shoot continued according to the photo director’s instructions.

Perhaps because they’d been forced to act during the music video shoot, the members looked far more comfortable than before.

‘Photography is definitely easier than acting.’

“Cut!”

Even the photo director looked much more relaxed now than he had at the beginning.

“Are you really rookies? Your facial acting is better than I expected.”

“Thank you.”

“The photos are turning out really well. Let’s wrap up the school-uniform shoot here and move on to the next concept.”

“Yes!”

 

☆☆☆

 

The second outfit was the classic symbol of youthful freshness: white T-shirts and blue jeans.

Clean, simple, and universally appealing, it was personally my favorite outfit.

The final outfit concept was the so-called “boyfriend look.”

The stylists dressed each member in a boyfriend-style outfit suited to them, while I ended up wearing a light-wash denim jacket with white pants.

After constantly wearing black T-shirts and jeans, putting on brighter clothes felt surprisingly different.

“Cut! We’re done with all the group shots.”

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Thank you!”

“Alright. We’ll move on to the individual shoots now.”

‘Phew.’

Fortunately, the group photo session had finished smoothly.

Since everything proceeded without major mistakes, the atmosphere was remarkably positive for rookies.

“We’ll start with Kim Sunyoo first.”

“Yes!”

For reference, Kim Sunyoo was dressed in a beige trench coat and slacks.

Maybe because he was tall and broad-shouldered, he wore the coat exceptionally well.

‘Time for me to get to work.’

Although everyone was free to relax during the individual shoots, that didn’t apply to me.

‘The company put so much effort into styling everyone for these album cover photos. We need to preserve these looks.’

I figured fans would love seeing these as behind-the-scenes photos on Dalstagram.

I picked up the latest shared smartphone provided by the agency.

Click. Click.

While Kim Sunyoo’s shoot was underway, I started taking pictures of the members lounging around the waiting room.

“…Siwoo hyung?”

Yoo Hoseung looked up from drinking chocolate milk with wide, round eyes, and the moment was captured by the camera.

“That’s a really natural shot.”

Since Yoo Hoseung was always confident in front of cameras, photos taken during unexpected moments felt even more valuable.

Next, I turned the camera to the right.

In the corner of the waiting room, Kang Chan was doing push-ups.

Click. Click.

True to his focused personality, he was so absorbed in exercising that he didn’t even notice he was being photographed.

Turning left, I found Seo Hayul getting his makeup touched up.

The moment I pointed the camera at him, his expression became awkward, which was honestly pretty funny.

“Ah… hyung. Could you please take pictures of me when I look cool?”

“No. You’re pretty far from cool.”

“That’s so mean!”

After teasing Seo Hayul to my heart’s content, I pointed the camera toward Rua, who was sprawled across the sofa.

The moment I aimed the camera at Rua, who was sitting comfortably with his eyes closed…

“Boo!”

‘…You startled me. I thought he was asleep.’

“Hehe! Siwoo dongsaeng, did I scare you?”

“No.”

“Huh? I think you did. And were you taking pictures of me just now?”

“Yes. Your outfit and makeup match the sleeping pose well.”

As much as I hated to admit it, visually he really did resemble a prince sleeping in a waiting room.

“Siwoo dongsaeng… you’re really serious about being an idol.”

“It’s part of an idol’s professionalism and duty. If it’s for the fans, I should work hard.”

“Good! Then if we’re doing this, let’s do it properly!”

The moment he said that, Rua immediately unleashed a full set of idol fan-service poses: V-signs, winks, finger hearts, everything.

His facial expression changed every time he switched poses.

Click. Click. Click.

“Rua hyung, I think that’s enough.”

“No.”

“There are already over a hundred photos.”

“That’s a rookie number. We’ve still got a long way to go.”

“…”

“Okay, really the last one! Seriously! I’ll just do a cheek poke pose!”

“…Alright.”

‘Is this some kind of innate talent?’

Rua was the kind of idol who never wasted his aegyo because he knew exactly what fans would like.

‘That shameless confidence is honestly something worth learning from.’

Either way, seeing Rua enthusiastically participate in the photo-taking process was rather admirable.