After the first meeting had ended, only two people remained in the conference room: Eun-gyeom and a middle-aged man, waiting for the next meeting to start.
The middle-aged man, as if making a point, cleared away the scattered documents on the desk and placed a freshly printed document on it. From the very first page, it was a document that Eun-gyeom couldn’t just pass by without taking a look.
“Can I take a look?”
In the end, like a fish biting at the bait, Eun-gyeom picked up the first page and asked the middle-aged man. The man responded as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“This all started because of your influence, so who would stop you from seeing it?”
“Oh, come on, it’s not because of me.”
Eun-gyeom tried to brush off the man’s words, but he knew the man was right. He must have worked really hard to win over the representative, to the point that just thinking about it now made him sweat. In that moment, Eun-gyeom briefly regretted taking on such a task, wondering why he had volunteered for this. What kind of rewards or praise did he think he was going to get that made him go through all this trouble?
“......”
“Impressive, right? Amazing, isn’t it?”
But the moment Eun-gyeom flipped to the next page of the document in his hand, any regrets he had suddenly seemed trivial. The effect of his influence was so astounding that it made him laugh out loud. As Eun-gyeom stood there, unable to close his gaping mouth, the man, who had been waiting for such a reaction, asked excitedly. It wasn’t like he had crafted a masterpiece himself—just added a few words here and there—yet he was taking great pride in it.
“You showed this to me on purpose, didn’t you?”
“Where has a guy like this been hiding until now?”
“…I’m at a loss for words.”
As Eun-gyeom waved the paper in his hand and asked, the man, looking incredulous, slapped his forehead with his palm and let out a helpless laugh. The paper Eun-gyeom was holding up was a close-up photo of Sol with a wide, beaming smile on his face. It was taken while he was laughing heartily at the members during a profile photoshoot.
“Is this the A-cut?”
“No, it’s the B-cut.”
“This one?”
“He’s smiling too brightly. The concept needs to be consistent with the other guys.”
Eun-gyeom nodded in agreement as he flipped through the pages at the man’s words. Only Sol’s photo was brightly smiling, and the extreme close-up made it feel out of place compared to the other members’ photos. This was something that bothered him when working in a group. It was useless to excel alone. Sometimes, under the name of “group,” a certain level of sacrifice or compromise was necessary.
“…That’s true, but… it’s still a shame.”
“We’ll have to use it later for promotion or something else. It’s such an amazing photo, it would be a waste not to.”
“Definitely. I thought he would stand out after some styling and touch-ups, but I didn’t expect it to be this good.”
“I feel the same. I wonder where someone like this popped out from.”
Their tastes seemed to align for once, and Eun-gyeom couldn’t help but agree. In fact, Sol’s photo was a masterpiece, no matter who looked at it. What surprised him, however, was that it exceeded his expectations. He studied Sol in the photo carefully. So, he could smile like this. What could have made him so happy and relieved? He looked like someone standing on a hill on a clear day with a cool breeze blowing.
Although Eun-gyeom had expected that lifting Sol’s heavy bangs would reveal a handsome face, he hadn’t imagined it would reveal such a delicate, porcelain-like face as if it had been meticulously polished. Moreover, the unique gloomy aura Sol usually had was completely blown away, just like his smile, which was even more surprising.
“I don’t understand why he’s been so withdrawn all this time. A kid who can smile like this.”
“Exactly. I didn’t know he could smile so well.”
When they had planned for Sol, this wasn’t the image they had in mind. They wanted to maintain the beautiful and delicate lines while keeping the dark and sensitive vibe that Sol had. The idea of someone who hurts themselves yet doesn’t want to be hurt, needing help, was appealing. But seeing him smile like this made them like it all the more. In fact, they liked this version better.
“…You’ll really include him in my music video, right?”
“Of course. Didn’t I put in a good word with the boss for that very reason?”
Eun-gyeom felt annoyed by the middle-aged man’s sarcastic comments about “putting in a good word,” especially since he was eager to jump into different projects with Sol right away.
“…Hah, should I withdraw now? Am I going to be overshadowed by his visuals?”
“You’ll have to work hard. Oh, but Tae-oh and the others are going to be in it too.”
As Eun-gyeom forced a smile and joked, the man, becoming more pompous, mentioned the other members as if they were just extras. Without much interest, Eun-gyeom halfheartedly flipped through the papers and nodded as he checked the other members’ photos.
“Got it. I’ll try to push it as much as I can.”
He figured it would be enough to place Sol as just another dancer in a crowd scene or a group dance scene with a lot of people. While thinking this to himself, Eun-gyeom covered the other members’ photos with Sol’s. The important thing was Sol. To hide the fact that he only cared about Sol, Eun-gyeom pretended to be curious and asked the man a few more questions, but the man made sure to mention the names of other members like Tae-oh and Ga-ram in every response. It was annoying, as if he was dealing with someone who owed him money.
“So, what will these kids do?”
“We’re planning to post short video content on the company channel.”
“Covers or something like that? A lot of kids are doing that these days.”
“Yeah. Internally, the team thinks it’s a fresh and approachable concept, but we need to get the representative’s final approval today.”
It was a type of video that had been appearing a lot on YouTube recently. Some companies would openly showcase their trainees, while others would subtly hint at them by filming them in a way that hid their faces or other identifiable features to stir up interest. Eun-gyeom, having caught on to their intention, nodded roughly.
They wanted to promote the group with the least amount of money and effort while still receiving validation. And if the project failed, there would be minimal loss. But Eun-gyeom had no intention of letting Sol be used like that. He needed to put a definitive end to this. No matter what his true feelings were, Eun-gyeom wanted Sol to debut at all costs. Even if it wasn’t in a group, he hoped Sol would stand in front of the camera as a model or actor, through whatever means necessary.
“If they’re doing something like video shoots, should I make a brief appearance too?”
“That would be great. It would guarantee views.”
“Please arrange a separate meeting for this.”
“A meeting? Isn’t that a bit too much?”
“No, they’re already filming regularly, right? I’ll just make sure to gather some footage on my own. I think that would look more natural.”
Eun-gyeom swallowed the words, “It would be better for managing my image and winning favor.” All he had to do was pretend to be a senior who cared about his juniors, bring some snacks to the practice room, and offer a few words of encouragement and support.
“I really hope these kids do well.”
Eun-gyeom softened his gaze and smiled.
***
A short video was uploaded to the YouTube account of YC Entertainment, which had been quiet with no significant updates.
The video, titled “HIGHNEX - UPGRADE Dance Cover #Shorts,” begins with a shot of Sung Sol crouching on the practice room floor. Sung Sol, appearing with a clean haircut, was wearing a black mask. As he sat hunched over with his knees together, Ji-ho, who was wearing a hat, approached him while singing and performing a brief dance.
Ji-ho playfully pressed Sung Sol’s shoulder as he came right up behind him. The video, which started with this casual scene, soon showed the other members gathering one by one. Each of them was wearing a hat or a mask.
Dressed in loose hoodies and pants, the four men gathered around Sung Sol, who was crouched down, and helped him stand up. Sung Sol, possibly resting to recover from fatigue, let Tae-oh and Ga-ram lift him without resistance. As everyone stood up, music began playing from somewhere.
It was a song by a female idol group that had recently been released and was climbing the charts. The song had become popular with many people participating in cover challenges due to its addictive choreography.
As the music played, Sung Sol and the others quickly and naturally formed a line. Unlike the powerful choreography they usually practiced, this dance was somewhat softer and consisted mainly of wavelike movements. The small hand gestures in between added a cute touch.
As Sung Sol made the hand gestures and bounced his body, his shortened hair fluttered, occasionally revealing his neat forehead. Once the cute hand gestures ended, the formation changed. Ji-ho stepped forward with a smile between Sung Sol and Ga-ram. Smiling brightly while performing the choreography, Ji-ho looked around at the other members and laughed. After each member took turns occupying the center position, the song came to an end.
Was it the Tae-oh effect of always striving for excellence? Although there were many upgrade dance cover videos, theirs stood out as energetic and earnest. The choreography emphasized smoothness, but their intense effort made it feel more accented, giving off a vibe that was more sexy than cute.
As the song ended, Sol quickly crouched back down on the floor. When he reached out his hand to the members, four men grabbed his hand, pulled him off-screen, and disappeared from view.
Although they were all wearing hats or masks on the very short video, their appearances couldn’t be hidden. They were all consistently tall with excellent proportions, but it was their cheerful expressions and the eyes visible above the masks that stood out. Perhaps because they were covering a famous song and using related hashtags, the video garnered a decent number of views and comments.
[YC Company Building • 9 hours ago
What is this? This is the first time I’ve seen an upgrade like this with bone-dislocating moves.]
[Vanessa Park • 9 hours ago
OMG what energy they have! I love that!]
[Minguri • 9 hours ago
Damn, the guy in the black hoodie is so handsome.]
[Joy Kang • 7 hours ago
Are they debuting soon? YC’s new boy group. Incredible vibe. I wish they had already debuted.]
[Milkis riva • 8 hours ago
Damn!! The boys’ version is even hotter.]
[Sincerely Anything • 7 hours ago
The guy in the white hoodie crouching down is so cute. Aww, you baby. His proportions are amazing, and his dance moves are smooth yet precise.]
[Daeun • 7 hours ago
Their proportions are amazing, their dance lines are so beautiful and refreshing, and my wallet is ready to open. So, who are you guys?]
