Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus Chapter 174

Lee Unha

 

It didn’t take long for the silence to break.

 

In an instant, the surroundings turned so chaotic that the previous silence felt unnatural. Someone screamed, while someone else came running over in a panic, reflected in my vision.

 

It was likely [Kingdom]’s manager. He was shouting furiously, but perhaps because I was too shocked, I couldn’t make out what he was saying. It sounded muffled, as if I were hearing sounds underwater. Several people swarmed around Lime.

 

And in the middle of them, I saw Lime with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

 

‘No. I didn’t mean for it to go this far. It just happened before I knew it…’

 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

 

‘This is just a mistake… It happened without me realizing it. I didn’t do it on purpose…’

 

“I asked what the hell you’re doing!”

 

‘No. I….’

 

Voices from all directions began to tangle together. I saw [Kingdom]’s manager making a call. Anyone looking at him could tell he was calling Crown, and that realization only made the panic grow worse. Knowing this was going to turn into a major incident made my anxiety intensify.

 

“Lime, are you okay? Dammit… hat are we supposed to do about today’s shoot? F*ck… seriously!”

 

“I’m fine. It’s not like it’ll leave a scar. I can cover it with makeup and still do the shoot.”

 

“Fine? What do you mean fine? The shoot? How can you go to a shoot in this state? Just stay still for a second. Yes. Yes, Manager. Yes, right now… Yes, at the shop… Yes, a bit of a problem occurred… Yes, we had some trouble with [YM]… Ah, no. It’s not like that. It was one-sided….”

 

‘I-I wasn’t the one who started it. Right? Th-that bastard started it first.’

 

There was nothing I could do except desperately cling to wishful thinking.

 

‘It—It might not be a big deal. It’s just a scuffle between kids… just an accident. It won’t blow up into something huge. Everyone… everyone fights sometimes. We aren’t the only ones. It doesn’t even need to become a public issue. It’ll get resolved on its own. It always has. It’s always been that way.’

 

Yes. It would definitely be that way.

 

‘Where is hyung? Where is he?’

 

I hurriedly looked around.

 

‘Where did he go at a time like this? Why didn’t he come up sooner? What on earth is he doing?’

 

As if on cue, my manager hyung finally came upstairs. I couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

 

‘Good. Finally.’

 

The moment he took in what had happened at the salon, his face twisted in shock. I could see him rushing over in a panic. Even in the midst of the chaos, the sight of him bowing his head was clearly captured in my vision.

 

“I am terribly sorry.”

 

“Do you think a ‘sorry’ is enough right now? Does this situation make any sense to you? Have you lost your mind?! Huh?! He has a shoot in two hours; how could you do this to his face?! F*ck! What are you doing… seriously, I…!”

 

“I have no excuses. I don’t know how we can make amends, but….”

 

“We absolutely will not tolerate anyone laying a hand on our artist. You didn’t just hit him anywhere; you did this to his face?!”

 

“These days, Dongkwon has been under a lot of stress…”

 

“So if he’s stressed, that gives him the right to lay his hands on someone else’s artist?!”

 

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”

 

“Sigh… Our company will be filing a formal complaint. We’re going to take action on our side as well!”

 

“Dongkwon. You come here and apologize. Now!”

 

“I—I….”

 

“I’m sorry. I have no face to show Mr. Lime.”

 

“…….”

 

“I am truly, truly sorry.”

 

“…….”

 

“My apologies.”

 

“…….”

 

  ***

 

I tried to recall what happened just now, what exactly transpired, but I couldn’t remember very well.

 

Maybe because everything had happened so suddenly, all that remained were fragmented scenes. I remembered myself constantly looking around in confusion, hyung repeatedly bowing his head, and, under relentless pressure, me finally forcing out an apology.

 

It was the same immediately after. Staff members and people called from the company gathered and continued to talk. I couldn’t remember the conversation, but it was likely about how to handle this incident.

 

‘There won’t… be any news articles, right?’

 

“…….”

 

‘They made sure everyone kept their mouths shut, right?’

 

“…….”

 

‘The companies will handle it between themselves, right?’

 

“…….”

 

There was nothing to gain from letting this become public knowledge, so surely the companies would smooth everything over among themselves. [Crown] wouldn’t want to make an enemy of [YM], so I believed it would conclude that way.

 

“Sigh… F*ck… seriously… what do I do now… Hyung… what are we going to do?”

 

“…….”

 

“Hyung?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“There won’t be any articles, right? The companies settled everything between themselves? I’m going to be okay, right? Right?”

 

“No.”

 

“What?”

 

“There’ll probably be articles.”

 

“What? Wh-what… Huh?! You aren’t—you aren’t stopping it? Who’s releasing it? Is [Crown] releasing it?Did they at least say their side was partly at fault? That bastard was the one who started—”

 

“I don’t know if [Crown] leaked it, but… Dis-update caught wind of it. The salon staff are keeping quiet, but it looks like other people who were there saw what happened. The fact that Lime had to cancel his scheduled appearance today is probably going to become an issue too… The company is trying to talk DisUpdate out of it as much as they can… but I think they’re going to publish it.”

 

“Wha—what? Then what’s going to happen to me?”

 

“You’ll probably have to go on hiatus.”

 

“Me? Why should I go into hiatus?”

 

“You’ll probably be removed from Zombie too, and I think you’ll have to suspend your activities for a while.”

 

“No! Hyung!!! You should have handled the talk better! Tell them it’s not my fault… huh?!”

 

“I already did everything I could. Our side will be releasing a response statement too, and another apology under your name will be published. Start preparing a handwritten apology letter.”

 

“No, I told you I shouldn’t apologize! Don’t you know people will just tear me apart more if I apologize? If you just explain it one more time… huh?!”

 

“No.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“I quit, Dongkwon.”

 

“Wh—what?”

 

“I said I quit… I’m leaving the company as soon as the handover is done.”

 

“What… what are you talking about? Why are you quitting? Huh? Is it because I yelled this morning? Are you mad about that? Why would you quit over something like that? I’m sorry. Okay?”

 

“Forget it.”

 

“You can’t do this, hyung. Huh? You can’t do this to me! At least help me clean up this mess first…”

 

“It’s not because of you. I’m just tired. I think I need to rest for a while. Anyway, I have nothing more to say… so that’s how it is. You’ll probably be able to return after your hiatus during the next comeback… Just stay quiet until then… Anyway, thanks for everything.”

 

“Wait… Hyung!”

 

“…….”

 

“Hyung!!!”

 

 ***

 

[Dis-update]

[Exclusive] [That day, what happened at the salon.]

[Dis-update][Reporters Kim Jiwoo, Park Taehwan]

 

[Trainee Beta of [TOP9], who previously caused a stir with his seniority controversy on the 15th, has caused trouble once again today, the 28th. The cause was an argument with a ‘junior’ at a salon. The reason? He didn’t like the way [Kingdom]’s Lime looked at him. He swung a punch at Lime, and Lime, who suffered an injury requiring one week of recovery, had to cancel all scheduled activities for the day.

What exactly happened at the shop that day? Dis-update has secured testimonies from witnesses.

Once again, both his boomer mentality and Lee Unha became major points of discussion.]

 

‘He really did it. His finishing blow… ended up being aimed at himself.’

 

[[TOP9] Seo Dongkwon officially drops out of Jackflix blockbuster [Zombie] ‘for personal reasons’. Is he avoiding the salon violence controversy? No official statement released.] [Entertainment News, Reporter Jo Jin-ki]

 

‘He just tanked his career in one shot.’

 

[[TOP9] Beta, Actor Seo Dongkwon, finally breaks his silence. ‘I am sorry for causing concern. I am physically and mentally exhausted. I will repay you with a better image someday’. No mention of Lime.] [Idol TV, Reporter Park Seonghwan]

 

‘Exhausted? Repay who? Who even wants that?’

 

Social media had exploded as well. It wasn’t an unfamiliar sight, but this time the flames seemed to be burning even hotter.

 

[Trending in South Korea]

[#[TOP9] Seo Dongkwon Withdraw!]

[8,254 posts]

 

[Trending in South Korea]

[#[TOP9] Seo Dongkwon Disappear Now]

[7,772 posts]

 

[Trending in South Korea]

[#[TOP9] Is One, Dongkwon I’ll Support You]

[10,542 posts]

 

[Trending in South Korea]

[#[Kingdom] Lime One-Week Recovery]

[11,572 posts]

 

‘It’s a complete disaster.’

 

↔ Reposted by an account only stanning L-M 13 minutes ago

[MyLimeOrangeTree @ORANGGGG9: [[Photo of Kingdom Lime’s face]] Look at how swollen Lime’s face is. His left cheek is puffed up. He must have been hit really hard… Thankfully it doesn’t look like it’ll scar, but my heart is breaking. I hope he recovers fast.]

 

↔ Reposted by an account only stanning L-M 12 minutes ago

[YourLimeLemonTree @LEAMO9999: SDK is a crazy bastard. A total thug. I wonder how a guy like this is even an idol. The people shielding him aren’t in their right minds either. I’m so f*cking mad. I just want to kill him.]

 

↔ Reposted by an account only stanning L-M 12 minutes ago

[OurLimeAppleTree @APPLEO9999: Isn’t making idols go on hiatus after causing scandals basically YM’s long-standing tradition? Seo Dongkwon probably loses his mind whenever he sees an idol more successful than him. Whether it’s <Fantasia> or [Kingdom], he probably threw a punch because a junior more popular than him didn’t bow correctly. ^^ Now I see exactly why K-H-J left [TOP9].]

 

↔ Reposted by an account only stanning L-M 12 minutes ago

[FantasiaLoveYou @GMKQMKZ1561: I bet Una also had a hard time on set. Given his personality, he probably thought ‘it is what it is’ and just let it go. ㅠㅠ <The World> doesn’t seem to like escalating problems either… Thinking about Una enduring that alone makes me so sad.]

 

It was quite a spectacle.

 

The fandom of Fantasia and the fandom of Kingdom, who had hated each other more than anyone else, had actually joined forces.

 

‘Is this really happening?’

 

Only a month or two ago, they were busy biting and tearing at each other; now they acted like one mind and body. As if shouting they’d declared a temporary alliance, they were supporting each other while focusing all their energy on bashing [TOP9]. Even the anti–Seo Dongkwon faction had joined in, doing everything they could to cut him loose, making the movement seem even larger.

 

I’d certainly wished he’d disappear. But I’d never imagined he’d be socially destroyed in such a spectacularly creative fashion. Hearing that the trigger was Kingdom’s Lime, I honestly couldn’t make sense of how things had escalated to this point.

 

‘Well… if a bucket leaks outside the house, it’s bound to leak elsewhere too. He’d been pulling insane stunts everywhere, inside and out. He just finally messed with the wrong person. That’s all…’

 

On the surface, it felt as though all the problems had finally been resolved, which certainly made me feel lighter… But that didn’t mean there wasn’t still something bothering me.

 

‘It does feel satisfying… but is this really a good thing?’

 

It felt like the guy who was supposed to be Kim Haejun’s power source had exited the stage too early. I thought I could keep Kim Haejun moving using that guy as bait for a while… But now, that might no longer be possible.

 

It was just as that pointless thought crossed my mind.

 

“Unha. Do you have a moment?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“I’ve finished writing everything. Before I send it to the company… I wanted you to hear it first.”

 

I heard Kim Haejun’s voice.