Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 440 - Side Story. A Certain January 31st

“Cheonghyeon, your mother called. She said for you to check your messages.”

 

Im Chanyoung handed over the phone he had been keeping. The phone, which must have been sitting in a drawer, felt as cold as a piece of scrap metal.

 

Returning to the practice room, Lee Cheonghyeon plugged it into the charger. After asking his hyungs for permission, he sat leaning against the wall while the members practiced and opened the message his mother had sent.

 

[Mother]

— Next year is the CSAT. How are your preparations coming along?

— Send me your target department and your current grades.

 

‘She called the company just to tell me to reply to this?’

 

A sigh escaped him. He didn’t reply immediately. It was an act of defiance he could only afford because he knew his mother wasn’t free enough to constantly check whether he had read the text.

 

“Hyung, you need to jump a little higher than you did just now.”

 

“Jumping high while singing and dancing is a very difficult task for a beginner like me.”

 

“If you do it about a hundred times, you’ll get it.”

 

“I’ll try to finish within seventy.”

 

“Isn’t that compromise a bit too realistic?”

 

Between the pauses in the music, he heard his colleagues talking. The one teaching was his friend, Kang Kiyeon, and the one receiving the lesson was Kim Iwol, who was nearing his first anniversary as a trainee.

 

‘I heard that hyung originally planned to go to university, too….’

 

No one knew exactly how an ordinary exam student ended up becoming a trainee. They simply assumed there must have been circumstances and left it at that.

 

At the start of the new year, Lee Cheonghyeon had told his family that he would be debuting soon. The debut had been confirmed much earlier, but he had waited for the right time, knowing exactly what they would say if he spoke too early and the debut got delayed for some reason.

 

‘I thought I’d hear less of this once the debut was decided, at least.’

 

It was a futile expectation. He stared at the screen for a long moment before closing his eyes, feeling a dull ache.

 

‘Do they even know tomorrow is my birthday?’

 

Even if they did, nothing would change much. The birthday presents he received at home were usually similar. He’d be lucky if they didn’t just give him another book with a title like ‘Become a Global Leader!’.

 

Lee Cheonghyeon turned off the phone and got up. As he returned to the formation, Kim Iwol, who was in the middle of his fourth jump, spoke to him.

 

“The message? Did you check it properly?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Nothing’s wrong, right?”

 

“It was nothing. Seriously, Mom just loves making things hard for busy people!”

 

When he spoke jokingly, Kim Iwol smiled in relief. Only Kang Kiyeon, who knew the situation, looked grim. Lee Cheonghyeon patted Kiyeon on the back a few times and returned to practice.

 

***

 

It wasn’t unusual for him to wake up before the alarm. Whenever his mind was complicated, even the smallest noise would wake him.

 

Today was no different. Lee Cheonghyeon woke up to a tiny sound coming from below his bed—a sound he usually wouldn’t have noticed. It was coming from Kim Iwol’s side of the room.

 

‘Does that hyung even sleep at all?’

 

Kim Iwol had been glued to his laptop in the living room even when Lee Cheonghyeon had gone to bed last night, saying he was turning in early. The album was about to enter production, and the promotional copy and poster designs were finished, yet Kim Iwol’s work showed no signs of ending.

 

Lee Cheonghyeon used to think that all adults naturally gained that kind of broad perspective once they grew up. It was because the adults he had seen while growing up were his mother, his father, Lee Soohoon, Kim Iwol, and so on. Though after seeing people like Jang Junhoo, he realized that not everything an adult said was right.

 

Regardless, Kim Iwol was definitely not a normal hyung. Lee Cheonghyeon shook his head and crawled back under the covers.

 

Then, three seconds later, he snapped his eyes open. He realized why Kim Iwol had woken up so early.

 

“Hyung!”

 

“Whoa, you scared me. Why are you up so early? Sleep deprivation is the enemy of healthy skin.”

 

Despite sporting dark circles the size of his eyes, Kim Iwol spoke nonchalantly. Chopped seaweed was already out on the sink. If sleep deprivation was the enemy of healthy skin, Kim Iwol’s skin should have staged an uprising by now.

 

“You’re doing the whole birthday thing again?”

 

Ever since it became official that Kim Iwol cooked seaweed soup every member’s birthday morning, everyone—including Jeong Seongbin—had agreed to wake up together and help prepare the meal. Even today, roles were already assigned: someone to stir-fry the meat, someone to soak the seaweed, someone to cook the rice.

 

“It wouldn’t be fair if I skipped yours. Member discrimination is a sin.”

 

“What even is ‘member discrimination’?”

 

“Treating members differently. It’s usually a problem caused by agencies, but there are also issues of discriminatory treatment between members, so just keep that in mind.”

 

“Who would call it discrimination just because they didn’t get a birthday meal? I’m not that petty!”

 

“I’m not preparing this because I’m afraid of being swept up in a discrimination controversy, either. It’s just that I know it’s your birthday, so there’s no reason not to celebrate it.”

 

When Lee Cheonghyeon opened the rice cooker to at least wash the rice, it was already cleaned and waiting to be cooked.

 

“There’s nothing much to do while the seaweed is soaking. Why don’t you go back and sleep?”

 

“Sorry, but I’m wide awake now.”

 

“Then drink some milk. So you can grow tall.”

 

“Wow….”

 

Ignoring Lee Cheonghyeon’s clap, Iwol didn’t wait for an answer; he poured milk into a mug and put it in the microwave. Standing guard in front of the microwave to make sure it didn’t boil over, Kim Iwol handed the perfectly warmed milk to Lee Cheonghyeon. Steam rose from the cup.

 

“Aren’t you drinking anything, hyung?”

 

“No. I’m satisfied with my height.”

 

What a scammer. I’m definitely going to get taller than him. I’ll surpass 183cm and get my revenge.

 

Despite saying that, Kim Iwol brought a glass of lukewarm water for himself. It seemed he thought Lee Cheonghyeon might feel awkward drinking milk alone.

 

“Aren’t you tired, hyung? You’ve celebrated five birthdays already.”

 

“If all I had to do was celebrate birthdays, I could do it as many times as needed.”

 

“What other anniversaries are there to worry about besides birthdays?”

 

“Plenty. The 100th-day celebration, first birthdays, entrance ceremonies, graduations, weddings, wedding anniversaries, 60th, 70th, and 80th birthdays, funerals for fathers, mothers, grandmothers, grandfathers, fathers-in-law, mothers-in-law, ancestral rites….”

 

Kim Iwol rattled them off like a broken vending machine. He looked ready to include the moving-in days of other people’s houses if not stopped, so Lee Cheonghyeon cut him off.

 

“Then why don’t you ever tell us your birthday?”

 

“It already passed.”

 

“Exactly when is your birthday that it’s already passed every time we ask?”

 

“I also think the timing is quite exquisite.”

 

“Hah, seriously.”

 

Kim Iwol wasn’t the type of person to dodge an answer just to play word games. Sensing there was a reason he didn’t want to say it, Lee Cheonghyeon didn’t pry further.

 

“Right, I have to cook the meat.”

 

“The meat?”

 

“I ordered the side dishes pre-made, but I ordered the meat uncooked. It doesn’t taste good if you reheat it after it’s cooled.”

 

“What else did you buy besides seaweed?”

 

“Just… stuff to set the table. It’s been a long time since you had a home-cooked meal.”

 

Kim Iwol poured water into a small earthenware pot and took soybean paste and tofu out of the fridge as he continued.

 

“And you like Korean food.”

 

It had been a long time since any of the members had a home-cooked meal. Since they were restricting their menus to get in shape for their debut, it was unavoidable.

 

But Kim Iwol wasn’t saying he was cooking soybean paste stew because everyone missed home-cooked food. He was doing this cumbersome work because it was Lee Cheonghyeon’s birthday and he hadn’t been able to eat his favorite food for a long time. Lee Cheonghyeon had never received such a meticulous birthday celebration in his life.

 

“What if I binge today and gain weight overnight?”

 

“It’s back to salads from tomorrow, so there’s nothing to worry about. With our amount of practice, you could eat three 12-dish meals today and still lose weight, so rest easy.”

 

“Aren’t you being a bit too nice just because it’s my birthday?”

 

Iwol, who had been responding like an automatic machine, paused his mechanical vegetable chopping, put down the knife, and looked at Lee Cheonghyeon.

 

“Didn’t you once say I was only harsh to you, unlike how I am with Kiyeon?”

 

“When did I ever say it like that?! I just said you were a bit stingy with my sleep schedule!”

 

“Kiyeon wants to grow taller, so I make him sleep early. You want to write songs, so I make sure you eat well and work hard. Got it?”

 

Kim Iwol had a talent for leaving people speechless.

 

Situations like this happened often when he talked to his mother or father. However, there was a clear difference between the two cases. When he talked to Kim Iwol, he didn’t feel bad even when he was at a loss for words.

 

Checking the time, Kim Iwol pressed the cooking button. Soon, the smell of freshly cooked rice filled the air.

 

After putting the stew on to boil, they talked for a long while about their debut song. To be precise, they discussed what color of music they should release for the next comeback to maintain the vibe of the debut album.

 

“Are you going to leave the next song to me, too?”

 

“If you’re not burdened by it and the result is good.”

 

“They say too much self-production can lead to self-replication.”

 

“A creator’s style is bound to show in their work. Whether it becomes variation or repetition doesn’t depend on you alone. If people claim it’s a replica despite there being countless points to differentiate—like item selection, lyrics, arrangement, and producing—then the responsibility lies with the people in the middle, too.”

 

“But what if the ten songs I write all have similar melodies?”

 

“Isn’t that why you’re studying right now? To prevent such a situation.”

 

Once again, Lee Cheonghyeon was left speechless. Even after cornering him so he had nowhere to run, Kim Iwol’s expression didn’t change at all.

 

“Hyung, you’re… very certain of yourself.”

 

“Do I seem that way?”

 

For the first time, a hint of confusion crossed Kim Iwol’s usually calm face. Kim Iwol, who had never hesitated in conversation, was unusually quiet.

 

“That’s an unexpected assessment.”

 

The response was short for something he seemed to have thought about. It didn’t seem like a lie, either. It was a strange reaction for someone who believed in others so firmly.

 

Perhaps feeling sheepish, Kim Iwol left to cook the meat.

 

Lee Cheonghyeon didn’t really care about the meat. He had already received everything he wanted for his birthday.

 

‘I really am immature.’

 

Praise, trust. With just those things, Lee Cheonghyeon could enjoy his birthday more than anyone else. Since he had been supremely happy since before the morning sun rose this year, he couldn’t ask for anything more.

 

“Give me the tongs. I’ll cook the meat.”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon forcefully took the tongs from Kim Iwol. In his head, he had only one thought: he wanted to fill the table quickly and eat a delicious breakfast with his members.