Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 531 - Like Father and Son

Lee Cheonghyeon and Kang Kiyeon sat side-by-side on a bench at the observatory. After crying for a long time, and with no Kim Iwol around to nag him anymore, Lee Cheonghyeon rubbed his eyes roughly with his sleeves. Unlike the two exhausted boys, the sea continued to ripple as calmly as ever.

 

“Do you remember the day during the world tour when Iwol hyung and I went to buy ice cream?”

 

“The day you came back with all the ice cream melted?”

 

“Back then, hyung told me. He said I should bring you to the Incheon sea sometime.”

 

Kang Kiyeon spoke while looking out at the ocean, his hands tucked deep into his coat pockets.

 

“Looking back now, I think he must have been planning this for a while.”

 

“I’m telling you, that hyung isn’t in his right mind.” 

 

Lee Cheonghyeon sniffled. Still huffing with indignation, he kicked at the stray pebbles with his shoe. 

 

“And why won’t they let us file a missing person report? I don’t get it. Do they know how high-risk he is? No one knows what he might do or where he might be.”

 

“I feel the same way.” 

 

Kang Kiyeon replied, prompting a deep sigh from Lee Cheonghyeon.

 

“…Nothing bad will happen, right?” 

 

Lee Cheonghyeon muttered to himself. His voice was thick with worry. The realization that there was absolutely nothing they could do felt stifling.

 

“I’m worried sick. …No, I shouldn’t say such negative things.”

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“The word ‘confused’ doesn’t even cut it. I can’t organize my thoughts at all. Though I feel a bit better than I did earlier.”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon swept back his messy hair. It had become a habit to ensure his hands didn’t touch the skin of his face while doing so—following Kim Iwol’s advice to a T. To think he’d turn them into natural-born idols and then pull a stunt like ghosting the group; his audacity knew no bounds.

 

“What about you, Kang Kyeon?”

 

“Me?”

 

“You relied on hyung a lot.”

 

“I did.”

 

Kang Kiyeon opened a can of soda he had picked up from a convenience store on the way. After taking a long swig of the cold drink, he fiddled with the can.

 

“My head is a mess too. If this were just a temporary lapse in judgment, I’d tell everyone they were getting too worked up and that we should calm down and wait… but I know Iwol hyung isn’t the type to do something like this just because things got a little difficult.”

 

“So? What are you thinking?”

 

“I’m f*cking pissed, but I think we should cool our heads first and think it through.”

 

“Wow. I haven’t heard you swear in ages.”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon sounded genuinely impressed.

 

Kang Kiyeon scolded him, asking if that was really important right now. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, he added.

 

“Remember how I used to say some pretty thoughtless things to Iwol hyung before?”

 

Though he didn’t give specifics, it was clear which period he was referring to. It was behavior unlike Kiyeon, who usually respected his elders even when arguing with Choi Jeho.

 

“Do you still regret it?”

 

Kang Kiyeon swirled the half-empty can. A faint sloshing sound followed the movement of his wrist, layered with the metallic clink of aluminum against his bracelet.

 

“I just think… no matter how bad my mental state was, was that really the only way I could express it?”

 

“You apologized. And you haven’t been like that since.”

 

“I’m saying that moment was the turning point for my mindset.” 

 

Kang Kiyeon looked out at the sea. 

 

“I don’t want to get swept up in my emotions, miss what’s important, and only end up hurting others. If I’m going to grow up, I should show some progress.”

 

At his friend’s words, Lee Cheonghyeon fidgeted with his fingers. He, too, had someone come to mind. He had tried not to get defensive, yet he remembered himself raising his voice at Choi Jeho.

 

“Me too.”

 

“…”

 

“I shouldn’t have said those things to Jeho hyung…”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon lowered his head. The memory of his anger weighed on his heart like indigestion.

 

He tried to put himself in the older members’ shoes. He imagined what it would be like if his only same-age friend suddenly vanished. If one day, Kang Kiyeon left without a word, saying he didn’t want to promote with them anymore… 

 

While the shock of Kim Iwol’s departure wasn’t necessarily less severe than that, he certainly wouldn’t have been able to remain rational.

 

‘Jeho hyung must have felt exactly like that.’

 

Among idols, it was rare to find a relationship as outwardly dry as Kim Iwol and Choi Jeho’s. But the two of them had always clicked. Kim Iwol was the person Choi Jeho felt most comfortable talking to within the group, and Choi Jeho was the member Kim Iwol could treat without the burden of being the eldest.

 

Every member had their own shared memories, but the bond of being the same age was special. Lee Cheonghyeon couldn’t help feeling that he’d done something unforgivable to Choi Jeho.

 

“It was the first time I saw hyung make a face like that.”

 

“It’s a rare sight. No matter how he found out about this, the shock probably would have been similar.”

 

Kang Kiyeon leaned back against the bench. Slumping until he was almost lying down, he calmly posed a hypothetical.

 

“Let’s say Iwol hyung explained his situation, said he wanted to leave, and asked for our understanding.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Do you think you could have accepted it?”

 

It was a perspective Lee Cheonghyeon hadn’t considered. He still thought Kim Iwol’s method was cruel. However, even if Kim Iwol had been honest, they would have needed time to support his new future without feeling resentful.

 

“At least for me, I couldn’t have. Unless he had an extremely compelling reason, I would’ve opposed it no matter what.”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon felt the same. Kang Kiyeon shrugged.

 

“That’s probably why he ghosted us. Look at Jeho hyung—do you think he’s the type you can persuade?”

 

“If it were me, I’d rather stay in the team than try to persuade Jeho hyung.”

 

The dongsaengs ruthlessly roasted Choi Jeho. After a brief, hollow laugh, the atmosphere quickly sank again. Kang Kiyeon downed the rest of his drink. His expression became resolute, as though he’d made up his mind about something.

 

“Let’s talk to the hyungs.”

 

“About what?”

 

“If the withdrawal notice really goes up, our time as a six-member group really ends.”

 

If it was just for a short while, they might be able to endure. Everyone had difficult times in life, after all. Just as Kang Kiyeon had taken a break because of his overwhelming anxiety, Kim Iwol could take some time off and come back. For that to happen, his spot had to remain open.

 

“Let’s try to negotiate with the company for something like a hiatus. At least…”

 

Kang Kiyeon’s lips trembled slightly. 

 

“Until we can have a proper conversation with him face-to-face…”

 

He felt like he might cry, but he held it back. Instead, he took a deep breath.

 

The two returned to the dormitory on the first train of the morning. Despite the early hour, the entire living room was brightly lit. Jeong Seongbin was sitting at the kitchen table.

 

“Hyung!”

 

“You haven’t slept yet?”

 

Jeong Seongbin greeted his dongsaengs, whose faces were freezing cold from spending the night outside, with a bitter smile.

 

“You’re back?”

 

There were dark circles under Jeong Seongbin’s eyes. He was holding several stacks of paper. He wasn’t the only one who had stayed up all night. Across from him at the table, hidden from view from the entrance, Choi Jeho and Park Joowoo were sitting side by side.

 

“You guys were all awake?”

 

“We were waiting for you…”

 

Park Joowoo smiled awkwardly.

 

They might have needed time to sort out their thoughts, but ultimately, they’d only made their older members worry.. Lee Cheonghyeon and Kang Kiyeon approached the table hesitantly. Before the maknaes could apologize and bring up the plan they had discussed on the subway, Jeong Seongbin pulled out chairs for them.

 

“You must be tired, but there’s something I want to ask you both.”

 

Jeong Seongbin made the first move.

 

“Even if it’s just for a little while, I’m thinking of suggesting to the company that we take some time until we can get in touch with Iwol hyung. What do you think about that?”

 

Kang Kiyeon’s gaze fell on the printouts Jeong Seongbin was holding. The papers were filled with text, including ‘Case Studies of Mid-Contract Termination’.

 

***

 

While the younger members were at the sea, Jeong Seongbin had gathered Choi Jeho and Park Joowoo for a serious discussion.

 

‘Too much lying isn’t good. Taking the actual situation into account, how about we say he’s going on a hiatus to recover his health?’

 

‘I looked into similar cases. It’s a long shot, but there are cases of idols returning after a hiatus of over a year. Considering that he won’t be active even in the fan café, I think we should keep the group’s hiatus as short as possible.’

 

‘In the handover folder, there was a plan using drafts to prepare for Cheonghyeon’s potential slump. If Cheonghyeon agrees, we can develop that instead of the repackage album, or we can get songs from outside that match Iwol hyung’s planning document. There are plenty of albums we can release that aren’t the repackage.’

 

Every discussion revolved around one central premise: they would wait for Kim Iwol. From the moment the discussion began, Jeong Seongbin had set that as the prerequisite.

 

“Did you go through all those files?”

 

Lee Cheonghyeon asked after hearing everything that had been discussed in their absence. The folders that had filled a whole screen even when displayed as tiny icons were too numerous to count at a glance. He couldn’t believe they had checked all of them and come up with alternatives.

 

“I had plenty of time,” 

 

Jeong Seongbin replied with a sheepish laugh. Seeing their leader maintain his smile through it all, Lee Cheonghyeon couldn’t bring himself to say anything else.

 

“Jeho hyung and Joowoo have already made up their minds. I want to hear your opinions too.”

 

“What did the hyungs say?”

 

“That’s a secret. I want you to speak your minds honestly.” 

 

Jeong Seongbin added, 

 

“A change in the team’s lineup is a big deal, after all.”

 

“We…” 

 

Lee Cheonghyeon exchanged a look with Kang Kiyeon and then cautiously opened his mouth.

 

“We were going to try to persuade you guys before we came back to the dorm.”

 

He then relayed the conversation he had with Kang Kiyeon. Kim Iwol must have a reason. There was very little chance that it would be something trivial, so as people who had lived and worked together, they should at least hear why he wanted to quit…

 

“If the reason is debt! I’m willing to help pay it off. I’m serious.”

 

“If that were the reason, I’d make sure it wouldn’t even reach your turn to pay, so don’t worry…”

 

“So, Park Joowoo, you’re saying you’d pay?”

 

“Jeho hyung, are you not going to pay?”

 

The shock of Kim Iwol’s disappearance had left everyone dazed, but for a moment, that one short joke broke the tension. The situation hadn’t changed, but it felt a little less hopeless.

 

“But Seongbin hyung, the most important thing in this matter is…” 

 

Kang Kiyeon trailed off.

 

“Right. Whether or not the company will agree,” 

 

Jeong Seongbin said with a firm expression. 

 

“Leave that part to me.”