༺ Requesting Cloud Support from a Shooting Star – 8 ༻
Six years ago.
“Why would a guy go to see a male idol?”
Ugh. Kyung Seo, engrossed in his game, spoke without turning around. His sister Kyung-jin, busy straightening her curly hair with a heated straightener, pouted her lips.
“Why can’t you go?”
“It feels awkward.”
“Our boys don’t have prejudices.”
“What are you talking about? Why did you include my name when it should be yours in the first place?”
In response to the sarcastic remark from her fourteen-year-old brother in the throes of puberty, the eighteen-year-old sister casually responded.
“It’s their debut album so it’s first-come, first-served fan meeting, not a lottery. Plus, my friend can’t make it. I need someone to take pictures of me getting autographs.”
“Do you only have one friend? And that idol would probably dislike it too. A guy coming.”
Regardless of whether it was first-come, first-served or a lottery, why did she put his name, who barely even knew them?
Kyung Seo was extremely uncomfortable with his sister’s unilateral action. Imagining the situation from the other perspective made him feel even worse. A dark-skinned man suddenly inserted among small female fans. Even though they were young, he thought they would dislike it.
Moreover, it was obvious that if he went to the autograph session, everyone but him would be female, or if there were men, there would only be one or two out of a hundred. He recalled the group photo of an idol fan event that Kyung-jin had shown him, boasting that her face was in it. Among the women, the only men were the celebrities who were hosting the event.
Ugh. Kyung Seo shrank back. He was originally shy, and the thought of being sandwiched among unfamiliar females was chilling just to imagine.
Kyung-jin, watching Kyung Seo shaking his head with a disgusted expression, pulled out a tint and applied it to her lips.
“If you think they’ll dislike it, don’t specifically mention you’re a guy.”
At her dry tone, Kyung Seo turned to look at Kyung-jin.
“What do you mean?”
“People often ask you if you’re a boy or a girl, don’t they?”
Don’t they? Unable to counter Kyung-jin’s question, Kyung Seo’s lips trembled.
Indeed, that was true. Kyung Seo, who was being homeschooled instead of attending school, had let his hair grow freely. Due to his shoulder-length hair, a voice that was high-pitched for a boy as he had yet to hit puberty, and a skinny body, he often got asked about his gender by strangers when he was out and about.
“But most of them figure it out pretty quickly, you know?”
His pride wouldn’t allow him to accept the truth too easily. Whether her little brother yelled at her or not, Kyung-jin completed her preparations to go out, singing a little tune.
In the end, Kyung Seo, who couldn’t resist till the end, was dragged to the autograph session by Kyung-jin. After verifying his identity with his passport, he put his hand into an opaque container and drew a number. As soon as he checked, Kyung-jin excitedly grabbed Kyung Seo’s arm.
“What number did you get?”
“Number 3.”
“Swap with me!”
Kyung-jin’s eyes blazed with excitement. Kyung Seo nodded hesitantly.
“Okay then.”
The number Kyung Seo received in exchange for Kyung-jin’s was 97. It seemed like a talent to get such a number. Laughing at his sister’s unlucky hand, Kyung Seo sat down heavily in the very back row. After casually setting up the camcorder and tripod that Kyung-jin had left with him, he leaned back deeply in his chair.
Wearing a hat pulled low and keeping his mouth tightly shut, he stayed quiet, giving no one around any hint that he was a boy. Everyone else was busy, testing the empty space with their cameras or changing their seats. Having nothing particular to do, Kyung Seo yawned.
He could see the back of Kyung-jin’s head from where she sat far away in the first row. Even just seeing her from the back, he could feel her excitement and snickered.
‘What’s so great about idols.’
From a very young age, Kyung-jin, the elder sister, loved idols. The first group she had liked was a five-member boy group who were ten years into their career when her favorite member left due to a major scandal. Though she cried and stayed up all night, she moved on to find a new love, proving that people forget with time.
The second favorite in Kyung-jin’s life was not a dance group, but a four-member band. To Kyung Seo’s eyes, all four members looked the same. Among the ones with indistinguishable facial features, she seemed to have chosen the one who was least so, and that guy got married suddenly due to a speeding offense.
The third idol Kyung-jin moved on to was this group. The five-member idol group, Two Planet.
Kyung Seo squinted his eyes and stared at the banner hanging on the wall that said, ‘Two Planet 1st Mini Album Release Commemorative Fan Autograph Session’. Despite all the hardship caused by her obsession with celebrities, Yu Kyung-jin was remarkable for her persistence. What’s more, it wasn’t even a group with a solid fan base, but a newly debuted rookie idol.
Having come this far, he thought he should at least take a good look at their faces. But as he silently waited, his eyes began to close. He was extremely sleepy and wondered when they would make their entrance. That’s when he gave up and let his heavy eyelids fall.
Suddenly, there was a little commotion. He quickly opened his eyes.
“Hello, everyone!”
“Did you have a meal?”
“They always say they didn’t.”
Two with black hair, one with yellow hair, and one with brown hair. They grabbed microphones and began to chatter as they entered with smiles on their faces. Kyung Seo’s gaze, scanning them all, stopped on the last man to enter, a man with red dyed hair.
The man, who had been waiting quietly for the chattering members to finish, picked up his microphone a beat later.
“Then, we, Two Planet, will start the autograph session!”
The guy with the red hair, he has a nice voice. Although his features couldn’t be seen clearly from a distance, that was the impression he got for sure.
Kyung-jin, who was number three, was called almost as soon as the members had taken their seats. She looked his way and flapped her arms, mouthing “Make sure you film this!” Kyung Seo nodded and turned on the camcorder, focusing it on the first member.
This member was Kyung-jin’s favorite in Two Planet.
‘What was his name? Youngmin? Umin?’
Scratching his memory, he scowled. He had heard the name from Kyung-jin over and over again but never paid attention, so it was hazy. He zoomed in with his camcorder to get a closer look at the guy’s face. The thick double eyelids and the droopy outer corners of the eyes, like a raccoon, seemed to be Kyung-jin’s taste.
While Kyung-jin was getting her autograph, he did his best to move the cam to keep up with her lateral movement. He only focused on capturing the idol and his sister in the clear two-shot.
He did not want to find himself in a situation later where Kyung-jin asked, ‘Did you film this with your foot? Do you want to end your life?’ He honestly wasn’t interested in what the members looked like or what kind of flashy fan service they performed.
The sudden jolt came when Kyung-jin started conversing with the red-haired member. Kyung-jin, who had been showing only her back, suddenly turned and pointed in Kyung Seo’s direction. The member also seemed to look in his direction.
‘Why me?’
Surprised, Kyung Seo inadvertently pressed the wrong button on the camcorder. The zoom was abruptly pulled, and the red-haired member was captured closer than the previous ones.
“……uh.”
At that moment, their eyes met.
The red-haired idol was looking at the lens, and Kyung Seo was looking down at the camcorder screen. Still, Kyung Seo felt exactly as if their gazes had overlapped.
The round, soft eyes with slightly drooped tails, light brown pupils, a small nose, and a stubborn-looking mouth were deeply etched in his mind. He quickly regained his senses and released the zoom, but that moment seemed to be in slow motion.
After that, he mechanically moved his hand and continued to film Kyung-jin getting her autographs. Occasionally Kyung-jin pointed in his direction, but he was too surprised to touch the camcorder again.
He stopped recording after Kyung-jin came down from the stage after getting the last member’s autograph. As Kyung-jin threw a glance in his direction, he made a circle above his head to signal that he had filmed it properly. Only after Kyung-jin turned around with a satisfied expression did Kyung Seo scratch his forehead.
‘What was that?’
The shock of that moment when the red-haired man looked here, as if time had stopped, could not be forgotten. Kyung Seo anxiously lifted his head and peered at the guy sitting in the middle. Unfortunately, the distance was too great to see his face clearly.
Biting the tip of his nail, he turned on the camcorder again and zoomed in. He enlarged the screen until he could clearly see each component of the guy’s face, then leaned back against the chair.
He kept watching the guy, who was having a conversation with a fan in front of him, laughing his eyes out, then sticking out his lips to make a sad expression, and also clapping and laughing loudly.
“I’ll be out until the 100th turn!”
By the time he came to his senses, the front row was empty. The camcorder was signaling a memory shortage. Kyung Seo, who quickly stopped the recording, hurriedly stood up. He was about to leave immediately, but noticing the numbered tickets and albums in the fans’ hands, he quickly picked them up again.
The moment of waiting against the wall felt like hell to Kyung Seo. If Kyung-jin had been teasing him with giggles, he would have passed the time glaring at her together, but she was too busy taking photos to even notice her younger brother.
Finally, it was the turn for number 97.
“Please turn to Mr. Yoon Min’s page!”
The name he had been uncertain about, whether it was Youngmin or Woomin, turned out to be Yoon Min. Kyung Seo roughly turned the pages to find Yoon Min’s and swiftly ascended the stage.
“Hello……”
“Hello. Is this your first time?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
Yoon Min quietly signed the autograph.
The Post-it that Kyung-jin handed to Kyung Seo, instructing him to get it signed in lieu of his name, read, ‘Give me a message that can boost Kyung-jin’s spirits!’
Yoon Min, possibly accustomed to such requests, checked the Post-it and diligently wrote a message. When he was done, he blew on the still-wet pen marks. Kyung Seo took a quick glance to the side. The next person hadn’t moved yet.
“……”
“……”
Silence flowed. Kyung Seo did not particularly feel the need to break the silence first, so he just stood there quietly. Despite the effort he put into drawing the heart, the awkward silence persisted until finally, Yoon Min was the one who broke it.
“Whose fan are you?”
“Me? Just… a fan.”
“So you like everyone.”
“Yes.”
Silence came back.
‘Does he make a living as an idol despite being so inarticulate?’
Kyung Seo stared at Yoon Min with a tense expression. Yoon Min awkwardly fiddled with the album. Finally, the person next to him moved. Without any delay, Kyung Seo moved on to the next member.
The next member was at least the type who liked to chatter alone, so the silence didn’t persist. Relieved that he didn’t have to make any conversation, Kyung Seo merely nodded his head. He listened to the story about the previous night’s dinner menu from a member whose name he didn’t even know, and then the conversation time was over.
Following the person next to him, Kyung Seo moved his spot again.
“Hel……”
“Hello!”
Before he could even finish his greeting, a refreshing voice reached his ears and Kyung Seo immediately lifted his head.
“Didn’t you come here with your family?”
A man with hair as red as autumn leaves was revealing his white teeth in a smile. It was the same man that he had been watching on the camcorder screen while waiting.
“Right? I heard you talking earlier. Your younger sibling is coming later.”
“That’s correct.”
His lower lip trembled as he answered. Suddenly, his throat was dry. Swallowing his saliva, Kyung Seo nodded. The man with puppy-like innocent eyes slightly twisted his face and approached him.
“What’s your name?”
He thought he had seen enough on the screen just a moment ago, but seeing up close in person felt different. His eyes, touched by light, sparkled, his nose was almost too three-dimensional, and his eyelashes were long. Despite being in his twenties, there wasn’t a trace of stubble.
For some reason, he clenched his fist as he started to sweat.
“Yu-kyung……”
He didn’t mean to speak like a fool, but his voice trailed off. As he tried to clear his throat to speak again, the man, with his eyes wide open, exclaimed.
“So you’re Kyung-jin’s sister!”
No, he wasn’t.
“You resemble your sister!”
No, neither was true. Kyung Seo’s jaw dropped. Setting aside the fact that he didn’t resemble anyone, he wasn’t a ‘sister’ to begin with. It seemed that he had mistaken him for a woman. Just as he was about to refute, taken aback, he recalled what Kyung-jin had told him.
“If you think they would dislike it, don’t bother telling them you’re a man.”
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