Chapter 102: I’m Pretty Weak to Compliments

The moment the door opened, my breath stopped for an instant.

“Hello.”

“Ah, h-hello!”

It was Tipple’s main vocal Choi Yeonwoo and main dancer Sung Jihoo—8th-year top-tier idols.

They were one of the groups currently driving substantial revenue for Doubles.

Even though they had focused mostly on solo activities for the past two years, Tipple’s fandom remained solid.

Male idols who managed to secure both a strong core fandom and mainstream popularity like that were rare.

They were truly incredible people.

I had been quite a fan personally, but I never thought I’d meet them like this.

Especially Sung Jihoo.

Seeing him like this, I couldn’t even meet his eyes….

Swoosh—

Hiding my trembling hands from nerves, I clasped them behind my back.

Step, step.

With heavy footsteps, Sung Jihoo walked to the center of the practice room and gave a small bow with a slight smile.

A low, resonant voice flowed out.

“I’m Sung Jihoo from Tipple. Nice to meet you.”

The epitome of young, rich, tall, and handsome—Tipple’s main dancer, Sung Jihoo.

Confidence oozed from his self-introduction.

And for good reason.

He was an 8th-year idol, but having debuted young, he was still only twenty-seven.

Next to him, Tipple’s main vocal Choi Yeonwoo was two years younger.

How many people that age could boast such success?

“Waaah!”

“Senior, I’m really a fan.”

“Me too.”

I had only ever seen them on screen before—this was my first time seeing them up close.

Sung Jihoo tilted his head slightly, his razor-sharp jawline looking like it could cut.

Though his lips were clearly smiling, that unapproachable aura was still intact.

Seeing him again like this, he really did look cold.

He was already intimidating as a senior, but with that kind of cold impression, I felt like I wouldn’t even dare to speak to him if we met elsewhere.

By contrast, Choi Yeonwoo standing beside him felt a bit closer to Ha Junseo’s type.

With his round, gentle features and the subtle youthful air of being Tipple’s youngest member…

“I’m Choi Yeonwoo from Tipple.”

Whenever he smiled, his eyes curved like those of a country puppy.

Ah, right.

I think he was Ian-hyung’s role model.

I remembered hearing that a few times back when I was still with Starf.

Sure enough.

When I glanced over, Seo Ian’s eyes were sparkling as if polished with gloss.

He blurted out something straight out of a fan signing event.

“R-really… it’s an honor.”

Seo Ian bowed deeply, trembling all over.

I could already imagine the captions on the reality show footage: [A soft Sundubu, moved to meet his idol].

Cha Seongbin bit his lower lip, holding back a laugh.

“Pfft.”

“He must really be a fan. Ian doesn’t know what to do with himself.”

Ugh, so embarrassing.

I was also a fan of Senior Sung Jihoo but…

Let’s not be as obvious as that.

Even though I had auditioned with a Tipple song.

Even though I had practiced my dance lines while watching their dance fancams.

Even though I had listened to a Tipple song on my way to work today…

Anyway, I should pretend otherwise.

With a polite smile, I kept my gaze fixed straight ahead as if nothing was happening.

Now that their introductions were over, it was our turn.

It made sense for me and Seo Ian to be frozen stiff from personal bias, but why were the rest of the members so pale?

It seemed like everyone was even more nervous because these were direct seniors from the same agency.

In the midst of it, Kang Siwoo’s booming voice rang out.

“Allow us to greet you properly. Shine bright, hello, we’re Stardust!”

“Yes, nice to meet you.”

“We look forward to working with you!”

Shuffle—

After finishing our respectful greetings, we instinctively lined up neatly without being told.

Choi Yeonwoo seemed amused by our behavior and couldn’t help but laugh.

“Don’t be so stiff. You’re making me feel really old getting treated like a senior….”

“What, you didn’t know? You’re old now too.”

“Then what does that make you, hyung?”

“…Fair point.”

The two exchanged light jokes, trying to ease the tension.

Of course, it didn’t help much.

Ah, I’m so nervous.

Even after greeting them, I still couldn’t calm down, swallowing dryly.

The red light on the camera blinked, but right now, I couldn’t care less about the filming.

Out of all the reality shows we’d filmed so far, this was hands-down the most nerve-wracking.

Seeing us like that, Sung Jihoo was the first to speak.

“Well, we didn’t come here to check the cleanliness of the practice room or watch what you do for fun when we’re not around, right?”

“Hyung, that’s a good one. Surprise cleaning inspection.”

“…!”

Even as a joke, please don’t say things like that.

Our leader’s heart just dropped out and came back in again.

“Sigh.”

Ignoring Choi Yeonwoo’s words, Sung Jihoo continued.

“Anyway, today we’ll give advice where we can after watching you. And if you have anything you’re curious about, we’ll have a Q&A… so, just relax.”

Gulp.

“—Though, I guess even if I say that, you won’t be able to relax.”

Senior Sung Jihoo was someone with a very strong sense of self-awareness.

With a cool expression, he spoke while smiling.

“Let’s get straight to the point. Do you have a stage prepared?”

“Yes, we have our fan song and the title track from our debut album.”

Originally, we were going to show our recently released fan song, but since it was weak in performance, we thought it might be hard for them to evaluate it.

That’s why we decided to perform Spacewalk (Yuyeong) instead.

In front of our lifelong idols, no less.

Kang Siwoo opened his mouth with difficulty.

“…Let’s get started.”

I want to run away.

If it weren’t for the manager’s earnest request, they wouldn’t have come.

Even if they weren’t promoting as a team, the members of Tipple were always busy with solo activities.

Especially Sung Jihoo—thanks to his natural visuals and pleasant voice, his personal schedule was always packed, and he was even expanding his footing in variety shows.

We had basically dragged these precious, extremely busy people into our humble practice room.

We had to make sure this wasn’t a wasted trip.

The members who understood that began dancing with full force from the very start.

At the center of the team, Seohan leapt out with confidence.

I thought he could only dance roughly, but he started singing live—completely live.

This is my universe

I swim through the universe—

Across more than 500 light years of distance

The only things that can reach are only light and me

He’s good.

Sure, Doubles would’ve picked talented kids, but they were still rookies.

Watching the stage without much expectation, Sung Jihoo’s eyebrows twitched.

Never mind the dancing—what was with that vocal?

He didn’t even have a mic, yet his voice didn’t waver much.

His facial expressions were flawless, as if he were on a real stage.

I’ll fold the universe in half

And catch up to the time that has passed

Seohan tilted his head slightly in a teasing way before stepping back.

The other members’ parts followed after.

It was a perfectly synchronized performance with no gaps.

If they normally danced with energy, today they were practically dancing as if their bodies would break.

Among them, Seohan’s clean, unembellished dance lines caught Sung Jihoo’s eye.

Wow, that one’s really good.

As a first-tier main dancer, he had been on countless big stages.

In both career and skill, Sung Jihoo had never been outshone anywhere.

Those who stand at the top have an eye for spotting those who will reach the top.

Sung Jihoo’s gaze stayed fixed on Seohan.

“……”

When the vocal part came, Choi Yeonwoo’s eyes grew more serious.

The younger junior with the light brown hair, who had shouted his admiration earlier with a trembling voice.

Even though his hands trembled as if nervous, his live singing didn’t waver at all.

Is he the main vocal?

Longing for that planet, I picture you again

I take off, I fly to touch your sky

Even in the middle of a group performance, his solid projection held the center, and his inherently charming voice was exactly to Choi Yeonwoo’s liking.

His style’s similar to mine.

The way he raised his high notes cleanly with a clear voice was similar to his own.

So refreshing. He sings really well.

Choi Yeonwoo’s favorite type of vocal was one that burst forth like a fizzy soda.

Seo Ian’s vocal style fit that preference exactly.

“Ugh.”

Once I had touched utopia

That planet was piercingly blue

I couldn’t forget it because it was so beautiful

I’m stuck in you

The main rappers’ diction was great, and the members’ vocal harmony was perfect.

I heard the members even personally participated in the arrangement, and it seemed to have turned out really well.

Spacewalk towards you

Even if I can’t reach it and die, I’ll be fine

Run in to that planet

Even if I collapse without reaching it, I’ll be fine

“The song is so good.”

The two of them watched the stage, each with their own evaluation floating in their heads.

And then, the stage ended,

Clap, clap, clap—

Choi Yeonwoo clapped and gave a thumbs-up.

“Good job.”

“Th-thank you!”

“With live vocals like this, you’d have had no problem even on an encore stage, right?”

It didn’t seem like there would be any articles titled [Doubles Rookie Encore Live Stage Skills Controversy] even in the worst condition.

Judging that there was nothing much to nitpick in the vocal aspect, Choi Yeonwoo gave another round of praise.

“You’re really good. I’m absolutely not just saying that. Vocally, you’re perfect.”

“It’s an honor. Thank you so much!”

“We’ll work hard!”

Next, Sung Jihoo received the microphone.

For some reason, he gave off the vibe of someone who wouldn’t be easy to deal with.

The members, still carrying the habits from their Starf days, nervously watched his expression.

“I also enjoyed it very much….”

As Sung Jihoo slowly looked over the seven members, his gaze landed on one person.

The center of Universe Dust, whose face was quite familiar even though he had never personally taken care of any staff.

Isn’t that the kid who debuted in first place?

In a calm voice, Sung Jihoo casually said,

“You dance well.”

“……!”

Seohan’s eyes widened.

He wasn’t sure if the direction of that gaze was actually towards him.

To make it clear, Ha Junseo tapped him on the shoulder.

“He’s talking about you.”

“M-me?”

Sung Jihoo was not the type to be good at saying things people wanted to hear.

So this was one hundred percent a genuine, honest remark.

Holding the microphone in his hand, Sung Jihoo nodded.

“You really dance well.”

At those words, Seohan’s face flushed bright red in an instant.

“Uh… uh….”

He was so flustered he couldn’t even get a “thank you” out.

Well, not that it wasn’t already written all over his face.

“Hey, your ears turned red.”

It wasn’t just his ears.

His whole face was starting to puff up as if it might explode.

All from just one compliment?

“W-why?”

Sung Jihoo, now flustered himself, pulled the microphone away from his mouth.

To explain to such a confused senior, Ha Junseo grinned and said,

A fact all the teammates already knew well.

“Seohan’s weak to compliments.”

Well, he was only eighteen, after all.

The sight of him avoiding eye contact and practically trembling was enough to make one smile.

Sung Jihoo casually added another spoonful of praise.

“It’s obvious at a glance. You’re very center-like.”

“…Thank you.”

It seemed the compliment had been a bit too much.

His voice sounded as if it was crawling into a hole, showing obvious embarrassment, so they couldn’t tease him any further.

‘Still just a kid.’

A kid with incredible skills.

Sung Jihoo let out a small laugh.

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