Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 439 - My Beloved Family (4)

The lingering emotion of the stage lasted a long time. The sea Park Joowoo had created was so deep that I couldn’t escape it until the final participant finished their song. Victory, as expected, went to Park Joowoo.

 

We waited quietly for him to return. After finishing his victory speech and interviews, and exchanging greetings with the other cast members, Park Joowoo opened the door and entered. Jeong Seongbin immediately bolted from his seat.

 

The two hugged each other without a word. When Park Joowoo met my eyes while patting Jeong Seongbin’s back, he approached me next. I opened my arms, and he slipped into them. I could feel his burning warmth directly.

 

In the past, Park Joowoo had made a choice for himself at the end, but he had failed. I, on the other hand, had met my end without doing anything in the face of sudden death.

 

Once my head cooled down, I could deduce that what we had in common wasn’t suicide. Even if our agonizing hearts were similar, everything from the process to the result was different. I simply hadn’t been able to read what lay beyond.

 

And only today did I find the answer—one that, perhaps, I might have been better off not knowing.

 

If what we shared was the experience of losing someone we loved and being left alone for a long time, then it would have been better if we weren’t alike.

 

However, for now at least, I decided to accept it gladly. Because now, I could understand his loneliness even just a little bit. Though unlike me, who still couldn’t accept parting, Park Joowoo had already come to terms with it.

 

“…Don’t you have anything to say?”

 

Park Joowoo asked. I almost said that it didn’t feel right to evaluate a stage like that, but stopped. I knew well that if he had wanted sympathy, he wouldn’t have performed that stage in the first place.

 

I knew the feeling that you couldn’t move forward unless you faced the past. Back then, the method I mostly chose was avoidance.

 

Park Joowoo, on the other hand, faced it head-on. And ultimately overcame it. His expression said it all.

 

It was my role, as the listener, to respond to the message within his song.

 

“You were cool.”

 

The image of Park Joowoo, glowing despite being drenched in black from head to toe, remained vivid in my mind. I felt like I would never forget today’s stage. How could I ever forget a story lived so intensely?

 

“You were really amazing.”

 

“…….”

 

“As expected, rock is the best, right?”

 

Park Joowoo took a step back and looked at me. His damp hair and flushed skin made him seem so alive.

 

Park Joowoo’s eyes sparkled brilliantly.

 

“That’s right.”

 

He gave a bright smile.

 

“This is why I love rock.”

 

Even though he wasn’t wearing his wristbands, Park Joowoo didn’t scratch the skin where the bracelet touched. It was likely because the bracelet no longer felt cold to him.

 

If there were stars on earth, wouldn’t they look like Park Joowoo? Especially the way they shine bright and make people cheer the moment they appear.

 

The star named Park Joowoo was so dazzling that anyone who encountered him would stop in their tracks beneath his light, even without being asked.

 

Then, Park Joowoo would smile and sing a song for his audience. With a pure heart.

 

Just like the childhood dream he himself had once wished for.

 

* * *

 

After appearing on ‘Genre-Switch.’, Park Joowoo became noticeably more cheerful. He frequently nodded his head to music alone in front of the fridge or hummed while tending to his flowerpots.

 

His pace in replying to BubblePop messages returned to normal as well. Park Joowoo said he no longer cared about negative reactions.

 

“I think it’s because I’ve made up my mind.”

 

Slowly but clearly, he said he was focusing on group activities entirely of his own will, not because he was being swayed by external factors or shrinking away.

 

“I decided to be grateful to the members rather than feeling sorry.”

 

That was actually a pretty admirable thing to say. I gave him a word of encouragement, telling him he’d made a good decision.

 

On the day the episode aired, he and Lee Cheonghyeon did a live stream together about their experience on ‘Genre-Switch’. Me, Jeong Jeong Seongbin, and Kang Kiyeon sat in the living room together, biting our nails as we watched it in real-time.

 

『The atmosphere of the stage was a bit heavy… so I couldn’t ask you to do the arrangement, Cheonghyeon.』

 

『What’s that about? From now on, you have to come to me first, no matter what.』

 

Lee Cheonghyeon grumbled unnecessarily at Park Joowoo’s honest confession. Park Joowoo soothed his younger member with a faint smile.

 

『Many people worried about me after my story was revealed, but I’m okay…! Jeho hyung even said I could become his younger sibling if things ever got tough.』

 

『Really?』

 

『He said whether he has one brother or two, there isn’t much difference…』

 

『He’s such a ridiculous hyung, seriously.』

 

Thanks to the live stream, we even got to hear conversations between roommates. I felt like I should tell the world that Choi Jeho, who had officially become Park Joowoo’s ‘big brother’, had already gone to sleep!

 

I almost started typing furiously in the real-time chat but held back. Out of respect for the sincerity he showed in looking after his brother, I’d let him slide today.

 

『The members are all family.』

 

Park Joowoo said. It was a short sentence, but I could feel his sincerity.

 

『So… I want to promote with our members for a long, long time. More and more.』

 

It was an indirect answer to the solo rumors. The comments that frequently appeared in the chat began to vanish one by one. Lee Cheonghyeon nodded, saying he understood that feeling.

 

『I’ll still keep doing covers though. And ‘Genre-Switch’ was fun too.』

 

『Do everything you want to do. Just make sure you’re back in time for the comeback.』

 

『Yeah….』

 

Park Joowoo answered obediently. He looked happy, as if the words ‘come back’ pleased him.

 

After the live stream, the obsessive posts decreased significantly. A few people were angry, claiming he was targeting fans, but they all disappeared after being told off by others telling them to have conscience, since they should be grateful he still spoke so kindly.

 

Instead, the attention on Park Joowoo as an individual increased further. I told him to give up on this semester even if it meant wasting tuition because it was obvious he’d get caught up in unnecessary attention, but the kid still showed up at school to stamp his attendance diligently.

 

I got so worried that I eventually caught Jeong Jeong Seongbin after he finished school and sat him down.

 

“Did people at school bother Joowoo?”

 

“They did. His department classmates were careful, but it was more the random students who recognized him…”

 

Jeong Seongbin awkwardly laughed it off.

 

“But Joowoo handled it really well. He didn’t seem bothered by it.”

 

“I get it for now. So, what did I tell you to say if a professor sees Joowoo and asks, ‘Why don’t you do solo activities?'”

 

“Professor, we absolutely cannot let Joowoo go solo!”

 

“What are you two doing…?”

 

Park Joowoo appeared in front of me and Jeong Jeong Seongbin while we were in the middle of our repetitive training.

 

“We’re running a simulation to prevent a Park Joowoo abduction. It’ll be a problem if the number of people eyeing our Master-Singer Chinchilla increases. Say it again, a visual main vocal is more precious than what?”

 

“Wild Ginseng.”

 

“I think Jeong Seongbin has been completely brainwashed….”

 

“Joowoo, if a voice crack happens once, it’s a mistake, but what is it if it happens twice?”

 

“Carelessness.”

 

“Three times?”

 

“A warning.”

 

“And the reason?”

 

“Because after the fourth, you lose both shame and awareness.”

 

“And a compilation of voice cracks?”

 

“It’s the byproduct left in the footsteps of one who neglected improvement….”

 

Park Joowoo covered his mouth in surprise, perhaps shocked by his own answer.

 

“I’m just adding one more thing to that. Park Joowoo belongs to Spark. We can’t give you to anyone. It might sound trivial, but it’s very important, okay?”

 

Park Joowoo nodded, albeit with a look of slight bewilderment. He might find the form of it a bit excessive, but he must have clearly recognized the fact that the group treasured him.

 

* * *

 

The phones at UA were ringing off the hook for a while with ‘love calls’ looking for Park Joowoo. To put it nicely, they were love calls; in reality, they were more like desperate pleas.

 

It was natural for Park Joowoo’s skills to receive national attention. If someone that good at singing stayed unknown, that would’ve been weirder.

 

Still, rapid growth needed to be handled carefully. Since there were precedents where fake dating rumors were spread to cover up drug issues or public opinion was manipulated for money, we had to be even more careful.

 

So, taking the liberty, I checked in my own way whether it was normal for Park Joowoo’s stage to have this much impact…

 

+

[Spark’s Eternal Vocal] Park Joowoo

Park Joowoo (21 years old)

 

Experience:

— Recipient of the Newcomer Award at the Music Grand Festival

— Winner of ‘Genre Switch’

 

Performance Evaluation:

— Vocal Proficiency: 21 / 

— Dance Proficiency: 14 / 20

— Self-PR: 4 / 20

— Attendance Management: 10 / 20

— Organizational Adaptability: 8 / 20

+

 

…I realized I had been under a huge misconception.

 

At first, I thought the Vocal Proficiency was a typo. However, seeing that only Vocal Proficiency had no limit, and unlike mine or Jeong Jeong Seongbin’s resumes, there was no ‘(100)’ written next to the evaluation as a perfect score standard, I could tell there was no error in the score. It wasn’t just a case of ‘the guy who was bound to blow up finally blew up’—it was a case where ‘the guy who should have blown up a long time ago somehow hadn’t’.

 

‘He really worked so hard.’

 

Looking at his organizational adaptability, which was twice his Self-PR score, my heart felt complicated.

 

Proficiency changed values quickly, unlike KPIs. Park Joowoo’s Self-PR score was likely a result reflecting the ‘Genre-Switch.’ effect. Even so, the fact that it wasn’t even 5 points showed how passive Joowoo was about exposing himself to the outside.

 

At the same time, the effort he put in to fit into a group of peers, despite wrapping himself up so tightly, was revealed in his organizational adaptability.

 

Now that it had come to this,  I couldn’t help but care. Following the monthly Leader’s Day, I should have a Team Bonding Day once per quarter. Not something useless like group jump rope, but something actually effective, to improve mental health and strengthen belonging…

 

“Hyung, are you busy?”

 

“Yeah, why?”

 

“You don’t even bother lying anymore…”

 

Park Joowoo stood at my door, looking conflicted.

 

“I have time to talk. Want to sit?”

 

Park Joowoo obediently sat on the edge of the bed. I closed my planner and turned my chair to face him.

 

“What are you doing tomorrow morning?”

 

Park Joowoo asked. Since our promotions were over, my schedule consisted only of monitoring, exercising, practicing, and working on the next album.

 

“If no new schedule is set, I’ll probably go to the gym.”

 

“Gym… is important.”

 

He then held back his words. It was obvious he had something he wanted to say.

 

“What did you want to do with me tomorrow morning?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Tell me. I can do my workout in the afternoon.”

 

Park Joowoo hesitated for a long time before speaking while gauging my reaction.

 

“I… I’m thinking of going to see my Mom and Dad… can you come with me?”