Because her course registration had failed, she was forced to take night classes to fill her credits. For the past few days, she’d only ever gotten home late at night. After showering, the college student flopped onto her bed and rolled around, seriously debating whether to skip her morning class tomorrow on her own terms. Just then, a series of chat notifications pinged. [TraitorButStillMyFriend: Hey hey hey hey] [TraitorButStillMyFriend: The two of them went to Europe together and holy shit my baby is killing it on stage] [TraitorButStillMyFriend: God... I think I’m in love with this bastard] [TraitorButStillMyFriend: Yeonhoo’s kinda cute lol] It was a message from a friend who had once been into Hi-Five, but switched allegiances after getting wrecked by The Dawn’s maknae and became a Noeul. They’d gotten lucky and been selected to attend Shining Star Season 2’s second round together. She skimmed the messages and replied half-heartedly before exiting the chat. ‘So life’s worth living again, huh.’ It still left a sour taste. Hi-Five, who’d practically had 1st place in Shining Star Season 2 in the bag, had that spot snatched away by The Dawn thanks to a well-timed scandal and Seo Hoyun’s bullshit. She hadn’t gotten over it. ‘Well, I was satisfied that Hi-Five outranked The Dawn at the Berlin concert.’ Kang Yeonhoo was an idol so polished, he never showed a single crack. Even the variety show [Will You Sing with Me?], which she had been worried about, had wrapped up cleanly, and it didn’t seem like there was any lingering contact with Seo Hoyun. Knowing that the two only had a business relationship, forged to dodge the production crew’s tyranny, had eased her heart. Still, as a Hi-Five fan, she didn’t want to hear another damn thing about The Dawn. ‘Sigh. Yeonhoo will handle things just fine.’ Since she wasn’t sleepy, she picked up her phone thinking maybe she’d watch Min Jiheon’s drama, which was now available on streaming. But as if her unsettled mood had taken control, she ended up abandoning Letflix and instinctively opened a fan community. She started bouncing between SNS and the forum, grinning at funny clips and cute dog videos—until a certain post title caught her eye. [Title: An idol showing their live busking in Italy on PopPop just to earn money for food] “What the hell kind of clickbait is this?” People would do anything for views these days. Even as she thought that, she still tapped the post. And that’s how she found out The Dawn was currently doing a live busking session. Honestly, busking was one of those cliché content formats in the industry. It was common to see idols drop their new album with a surprise performance in a busy subway plaza, or a flashy dance cover on foreign streets to generate buzz. She figured The Dawn was just hopping on the busking bandwagon for some DIY content while abroad—but then the screen zoomed in on The Dawn’s main vocal, Sung Jiwon, casually warming up on the electric piano. [Well, I guess there are angels in Europe too] [Yeah... they’re probably used to it This is what they call a Korean-angel] [These insane bastards are busking live, they look like indie musicians and I’m freaking out] Despite always telling herself to keep a healthy distance from K-pop, her habits kicked in and she started analyzing again. ‘Is this the kind of content you can only do as a mid-tier group? It’s risky. If it were Hi-Five, they’d have tested public reactions through a cable variety show first. Is it only possible because of Daepaseong’s hands-off approach? They’re so notoriously negligent, even if they get flamed for this, what’s the difference?’ She was the last person capable of distancing herself from K-pop. [TraitorButStillMyFriend: AAAHHHH YOU’RE WATCHING THE LIVE RIGHT] Just then, Seo Hoyun picked up a bass. And as if it were the most natural thing in the world, the live chat exploded. [Wait Seo Hoyun can play bass????] [Wait he's actually good at it???] [Oppa... it’s too much Unlike the fired-up Noeuls, the Hi-Five fan was unimpressed. ‘If this goes wrong, it could totally wreck their image.’ The reason she called it risky was that it was rare for idols to show off their musicality solely through live singing abroad. The Dawn members exchanged glances, signaling that the performance was about to begin. Seo Hoyun leaned toward the standing mic. [Chill out, Do not go too far] She thought he’d say something like “We’re a boy band from Korea,” but instead, lyrics began flowing immediately. With Kang Ichae on guitar, the mellow sound of old Britpop filled the street. Sung Jiwon’s piano followed seamlessly. [You and I are waiting fear hid underneath the bed] It was a song even she knew well. A track released by a globally renowned rock band in the 1990s—infamously composed while one of the members was high. It wasn’t flashy or high-pitched, but deceptively hard to sing well, making it legendary. With Seo Hoyun’s mid-low voice layered over it, it actually sounded legit. No—it sounded more than decent. [As we cannot leave all the things behind] Passersby began slowing to a stop. The wind tousled Seo Hoyun’s hair as he strummed the bass and kept singing. [What is this, a movie?] [Why are you filming an art film in public...] And suddenly, it hit her. ‘A beautiful backdrop, the soft twilight, easy-listening voices, and a moody song.’ All of it clicked together to resemble a scene straight out of an indie music film. The Dawn wasn’t trying to flaunt their skills. They were crafting a narrative. [Lay down, do not go too far You and I are waiting hope over the sunlight] Right then, as if on cue, Sung Jiwon joined in. A bright tone paired with explosive vocal power. People began reaching for their wallets. [lolololololol there’s now a fan account tracking how much The Dawn made from busking lololol] She read the comment and scoffed in disbelief. ‘What is this, a management tycoon sim? Damn it!’ Even if it earned them some backlash, the concept was landing well with people. The skyrocketing follower count and concurrent viewers proved it. [lololololol who the hell comes up with these ideas] [I mean seriously, at least feed them if you're gonna work them , but damn this is hilarious] [They’re actually drawing a crowd lololol] To preempt any controversy, a pinned notice had been posted at the top of their profiles. [It’s a secret from The Dawn, but 100% of tips will be d. We’re flexing the company card for dinner tonight!] [I want to hate this shady agency but goddammit that’s adorable...] The donation destination was clearly listed, and fans began donating under The Dawn’s name and posting proof on SNS in real time. [Because of this bastard, I’m popping open another soju bottle. I can’t escape this fandom. └ Switching between calling him ‘bastard’ and ‘oppa’ with flawless fluency..] After finishing a few songs, The Dawn—riding the high—performed an unreleased track by Kang Ichae that was meant for the album but got scrapped. [Why the hell go all the way abroad to do this... when they won’t even do it in Korea] [They probably want validation overseas, or maybe the agency is dead broke lol] Negative comments popped up, criticizing the decision to busk overseas, and questioning why they were debuting unreleased songs on PopPop live. But the pushback was stronger. [Yeah~ but it’s all for charity] [Meanwhile, keyboard losers are just clacking away in their basements, while these kids are overflowing with talent and giving back lol] [Oh you’re arguing just to boost engagement? Thanks a ton, really] [Wow... the kids really grew up If they were truly failed idols, people would just pity them └ If they even got pity in the first place...] “But seriously, they’re really good.” As a Hi-Five fan, she had seen The Dawn perform a few times while watching Shining Star Season 2 and Will You Sing with Me?. Those weren’t long ago, yet the difference in The Dawn’s skill—especially Seo Hoyun’s—was stark. ‘What the hell did he do?’ In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to close the livestream—even as the Italian sky darkened and The Dawn closed their busking set with a fan song after multiple encores. Whistles, cheers, and applause erupted from the crowd. Waving lightly, The Dawn members then ran toward the camera. “We made quite a bit of money! We’re off to get dinner now.” And just like that, their two-hour busking session ended. Even though it was already past 2AM in Korea, the forums and SNS were buzzing. [Eat well, kids... ㅜㅜㅜㅜ] [Ugh but the sound quality was kinda bad T.T sob sob] That morning, a new post went up on The Dawn’s official YouTube account. [#The Dawn’s livestream has ended. In addition to the stream, we recorded a separate video. Watch the busking performance in HD, YouTube premiere coming soon!] [Oiii~~~ Daepaseong, I knew I could count on you~~~~!!] [Grovel grovel grovel] The college student, who had indeed skipped class that morning, got up leisurely and saw the update. Later, she found out that even after the busking ended, The Dawn’s maknae, Jung Dajun, continued posting updates through PopPop while they were eating dinner. Seo Hoyun was in such a good mood that he laughed more easily at even the dumbest stories, Jung Dajun was chattering excitedly, Kim Sunghyun nodded and listened patiently, Sung Jiwon was caring for everyone as usual, and Kang Ichae—off in a corner of the restaurant—was playing classical piano on a grand piano. ‘They’re insane, seriously...’ [Kang Ichae got tipsy on two glasses of wine and started playing the piano ㅠㅠㅠ It was Liszt’s Mazeppa, fuck ㅠ He’s my Cheon Seojin1)] [What do you think about an idol who plays classical music at a professional level... what do you think about a drunk guy who plays it by memory... └Guy whose limit is two glasses of wine = ideal man └└lolololol two glasses of wine omg I’m dying lololol] Hi-Five’s Instagram, Twitter, PopPop, and YouTube still hadn’t posted a single update. ‘Can’t believe I’m jealous of The Dawn......’ With a heavy sigh, the college student vowed to let go of her pointless envy and never look up The Dawn again. However, a few hours later— [TraitorButStillMyFriend: Hey did you see The Dawn’s SNS update?? They’re so fucking cute what do I do ㅠㅠㅠ] [TraitorButStillMyFriend: They’re dressing Ichae in streetwear from fashion week now ㅠ] [TraitorButStillMyFriend: Literally nothing doesn’t suit Kang Ichae, the Noeuls are losing it lololol ㅠㅠㅠ our babies are too precious I love them so much ㅜㅜ] While getting her caffeine fix after her late afternoon class, another barrage of messages came in from her friend. ‘Whatever it is, it’s the result of some intense scheming, my dear.’ Somewhere «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» in the back of her heart, the bitterness thickened again. Because today, she couldn’t deny that Hi-Five had just suffered a loss. Meanwhile, Seo Hoyun was wondering what the hell was going on. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn novᴇlfire.net Uhh, what? Before he could gather his thoughts, he was already inside a private party thrown by a famous brand. ‘What the hell is this...’ He’d gotten caught up in one of Kang Ichae’s tricks. Smiling faintly, Seo Hoyun brushed past the people who kept talking to him nonstop in English and Italian. ‘This is fucking annoying.’ He just needed to get out of here, so he started moving quickly—but someone suddenly yanked on his arm from behind. Hearing Korean in a foreign country, and in an unfamiliar setting at that, was surprising enough. “Wow, never thought I’d be so fucking happy to see Seo Hoyun in my life.” That voice was too familiar. He whipped his head around. Joo Woosung, looking pale as death, was standing right there.