Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 414 - Concert (1)

After listening to ‘Flowering’ followed immediately by ‘With List’, Baek Haewon was completely drained. It was a blessing that there was a cushion on the chair.

 

Amidst the chaos, Baek Haewon made eye contact with Kang Kiyeon as he stepped forward to grab some water. His naturally sharp eyes stood out even more when he smiled. Even the character band-aid stuck on his cheek was enough to drive someone crazy.

 

‘I’m saying this for the thirtieth time: wearing a school uniform and giving that mischievous smile is a crime.’

 

Watching Kang Kiyeon pick up two water bottles with straws, hand one to Park Joowoo, and sip away was unbearably cute. Spark was adorable individually, but gathered together, the cuteness was multiplied sixfold.

 

‘This school uniform concept is driving me insane, seriously.’

 

The dark navy uniform jackets and trousers gave off a more composed impression compared to the uniforms Spark had worn in their music videos before. Rather than the freshman vibe from their early debut days, they had the aura of upperclassmen. Of course, Baek Haewon’s school didn’t have any seniors like that.

 

“Nice to meet you, Sparklers!”

 

“So good to see you!”

 

The fans responded enthusiastically to Spark’s greeting.

 

“The weather was really cold, wasn’t it…?”

 

Park Joowoo asked, clutching the microphone tightly with both hands. Little did he know, the Sparklers didn’t feel cold at all. The Sparklers had been… burning up for about five hours now.

 

“To think the day we’d hold a concert has finally come. Maybe because something I only imagined has become reality, I’m still a bit dazed,”

 

 Jeong Seongbin said, and the other members nodded in agreement.

 

From a distance, Kim Iwol was slowly scanning the audience. Following his gaze toward the back, Baek Haewon saw a literal wave of orange lightsticks swaying in response to their comments.

 

“We opened the show with Flowering and With List. Did you guys like it?”

 

“In two months, it’ll already be two years since ‘Flowering’ was released.”

 

“Time really flies. I was a middle schooler when I first met these hyungs.”

 

“Has it really been that long already?”

 

Choi Jeho looked at Kang Kiyeon in disbelief. Baek Haewon’s reaction was much the same.

 

Two years. It was shocking. So much had happened that it felt like five years had passed. To think that all of Spark would be adults next year. It felt like only yesterday that the majority were minors; time was moving incredibly fast.

 

“Our maknaes are saying goodbye to their school uniforms this year. How do you feel?”

 

At Kim Iwol’s words, a chorus of laments erupted from the audience. If a refreshing idol group stops wearing uniforms, what are they supposed to wear?!

 

However, the sighs were quickly sucked back in thanks to Lee Cheonghyeon, who said that he didn’t mind since his own school uniform wasn’t that nice but would bring the concept back if Sparklers wanted it.—followed by a ‘same here’ from Kang Kiyeon.

 

“If we’re still doing school uniform concepts next year, I might be in trouble.”

 

Kim Iwol teased.

 

As soon as he said that…

 

“You can wear them for ten more years!”

 

…a thunderous permission roared from the other side of the hall. Kim Iwol’s eyes widened, and he lowered his mic, laughing.

 

“But since we’re now in our second year, shouldn’t we show you a more grown-up side?”

 

“We can show them, but can you hyungs handle it?” 

 

Lee Cheonghyeon asked, looking at Kim Iwol and Choi Jeho.

 

“Hyungs, you didn’t even grow any taller!”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon, who was now slightly taller than Kim Iwol, waved his hand over the top of Iwol’s head. Kim Iwol looked back with an incredulous expression.

 

“Cheonghyeon, we have seniority and experience.”

 

“You’ve gone past ‘growth’ and straight into ‘vintage’…?”

 

“Speaking of which, Jeho.”

 

Kim Iwol placed a hand firmly on Choi Jeho’s shoulder.

 

“I think it’s time for the eldest members to show them something.”

 

During IDC, Choi Jeho had smacked Kim Iwol’s back, but here at the concert, Kim Iwol was patting Choi Jeho’s shoulder. Baek Haewon, weak to changes in dynamics, covered her mouth.

 

All the stage lights went out. Soon after, the sound of splashing liquid filled the air. From the bottom of the screens on both sides of the stage, a purple liquid slowly began to rise.

 

‘Are they doing Under Bar?’

 

It was a cover song fans loved, but having seen the full group version during the 1st-anniversary content, it wasn’t exactly brand new—or so she thought.

 

Until Kim Iwol and Choi Jeho emerged from the darkness.

 

“Aaaaakh!”

 

A scream burst out of Baek Haewon before she could stop it. Starting from the floor seats in the front row where people saw them first, absolute chaos broke out.

 

Choi Jeho appeared without his jacket, his torso perfectly framed by a crisp white shirt. His forearms boasted a powerful presence beneath his rolled-up sleeves. The fact that he had tossed the jacket but kept his tie perfectly straight was enough to make anyone lose their mind.

 

But Kim Iwol, standing with his back to the audience next to him, was even worse. Whether the waist of his shirt was cinched with a strap or tailored, the lines of the shirt curved inward sharply at the waist. The dramatic taper from his broad, square shoulders to his narrow waist was enough to drive a person insane. His black uniform trousers now looked like perfectly fitted dress slacks.

 

As Choi Jeho tapped the tip of his shoe against the stage floor, the song began.

 

Under the table

You send me a signal

Telling me to come to you

 

‘Is he singing live?!’

 

During the 1st anniversary, Spark had only performed the choreography like a typical dance challenge. This time, it seemed they were performing it as a proper song. Listening closely, the arrangement was subtly different too.

 

As if you know

I’ve been waiting

Two eyes smiling from across the way

 

The solo dance of a 187cm tall man was breathtakingly good. Every time the deep wine-colored lights washed over his shirt, it created shadows that made the fabric look as if it were drenched in red wine following Choi Jeho’s movements.

 

Watching from across

The boundary

 

Choi Jeho, covering his eyes with one arm, thrust his hips. The fine muscles of his forearm, draped over his downward gaze, twitched. The fit of his trousers fell perfectly along his solid thighs.

 

The fact that Choi Jeho was skilled at wavy, fluid choreography was one of the things that made Sparklers tear their hair out. And now, Jeho was performing a new variation of the original choreography, packed with all the things he was devastatingly good at.

 

After delivering that massive shock, Choi Jeho stood in a line directly in front of Kim Iwol and turned around. A pale hand slid down Choi Jeho’s back, revealed to the audience.

 

Kim Iwol emerged, stroking down Jeho’s spine with one arm.

 

I know you don’t want

To cross the line between us

So stop”

 

‘They didn’t do this during the anniversary!’

 

Of course not. The original song didn’t have this performance. Since Hi, Kim Iwol’s sexy stats had peaked along with his dance skills. Baek Haewon couldn’t take her hands off her mouth. She was already screaming her lungs out; if she left her mouth free, she didn’t know what kind of profanities might burst through her throat.

 

Stop pretending

You don’t want it

Admit your heart is leaking

 

Baek Haewon failed to maintain her dignity. Watching Kim Iwol sweep his hair back and smirk with one corner of his mouth, she forgot how to contain herself.

 

If you don’t want to be caught

Come over here

 

Kim Iwol pulled on Choi Jeho’s tie. Wrapping the end of the tie around his hand, Kim Iwol sang:

 

Beneath the bar

That you knocked on

 

The screams from everyone around Baek Haewon were loud enough to drown out the shutter clicks of the fansite cameras, shrieking until their lightsticks nearly broke.

 

When the three-minute song ended, the strength drained from her body. Baek Haewon wiped her clammy hands on her pants. Her head was spinning. But she couldn’t rest yet.

 

I want the last person

Standing by your side

To be me

 

Spark’s song MISSION, which was at least classified as their sexy category, followed immediately. Kang Kiyeon appeared, wearing skin-tight leather pants and a black turtleneck.

 

‘Mom….’

 

Except for the tops, all of Spark appeared in leather pants. Choi Jeho had returned, tie removed, but wearing a black harness over his white shirt.

 

Kim Iwol’s top was still a shirt.

 

Except now, half of it was missing.

 

Looking at the cropped shirt and his fully exposed abs, Haewon realized that the white belt cinched at his solar plexus was actually a tear line for the styling.

 

And what sat upon Kim Iwol’s pale back, beneath the white shirt, was…

 

A long, elegant orchid. Baek Haewon almost cursed again. Being a refined, dignified fan was too difficult.

 

I’ll escort you

All the way to the stage

 

Isn’t it a bit cowardly for the person claiming to be an ‘escort’ to come out wearing a body chain on a bare chest?

 

It was absurd. She couldn’t believe the reality that the successor to Choi Jeho’s bare-skin black leather harness was Jeong Seongbin. Wasn’t Jeong Seongbin the one who came out the most covered-up in the MISSION music video?

 

If it had been an excessive otaku-style body chain, she might have felt the immersion break, thinking, ‘Putting a jacket over Seongbin’s bare body? Character interpretation fail!’ But Spark’s coordination team, as always, boasted excellent aesthetic sense.

 

The simple, thin chain suited Jeong Seongbin’s clean-cut image perfectly. It crossed his chest but wasn’t overly flashy. The silver-glittering chain was coordinated with a bracelet on his wrist, creating a sense of unity. Basically, it was just perfect.

 

Spark must have worked out incredibly hard for this day. Otherwise, the fit of their shirts couldn’t look like that. Especially the shoulders. When the signature choreography started, the venue turned into a boiling pot of frenzy. Voices roared from the depths of everyone’s lungs.

 

The fact that Park Joowoo had unbuttoned his shirt three buttons deep, and that Lee Cheonghyeon was wearing glossy combat boots that reached his shins, was maddeningly good.

 

The goal is only one

To remain by your side

That is all

 

But when Kang Kiyeon, wearing leather gloves that only covered the back of his hands—the one who couldn’t promote at the time due to health reasons—walked to the center of the stage with a languid, relaxed smile, she felt a surge of pure emotion.

 

She had said she was glad he could at least join for the final broadcast. Her heart had ached seeing Kang Kiyeon say he was so sorry and so disappointed back then.

 

Seeing this as proof that the opportunity to perform remained even after promotions ended, Baek Haewon was truly, genuinely happy.