84 - Upki Girl

< Taming the Whining Alya of Noble Descent > Five Minutes Later. In front of the eyes of EyeContact and Kim Seok-won, Yona’s waiting room was moved to a personal room on the second floor. Her rehearsal schedule was also adjusted to a more convenient slot, minimizing wait times compared to other, non-A-list artists. Naturally, this meant EyeContact was pushed forward one by one. This was my second request after securing two debut stage songs. In exchange, Alya retracted her threat to remove the broadcast advertisement. Since it was a contract renewal we planned anyway, from our perspective, it was an advantageous deal without any real concessions. Alya did more than corner PD Moon. She arranged for a weekly sponsorship of four hotel buffet vouchers to Great Korean Music for six months. From Oscar Hotel’s perspective, it was a negligible expense though. "The expressions of the EyeContact members were completely sour when the waiting rooms were changed." "It’s only natural to be upset when they think they are more popular, yet they share a basement room with other teams while Yona has a private one. This is the power of money... or rather, the power of Alya." Seo-won and Hong-yi leaned back happily on a plush sofa that didn’t exist in the basement. Yona was fastening a wireless mic receiver to her waist while her stylist checked her hair for the rehearsal. The solo room had excellent facilities but was a bit cramped for all of us to gather. Taking advantage of the crowd, Eun-bit pocketed some snacks from the table. I caught her. "Yu Eun-bit, put the snacks down." "Got caught." "Eating one won’t make you gain weight. Seriously, Ppwak seems strict only with us. Can’t stand up to others and all that." Alya, sitting on a personal chair brought by Jang-woo, sighed in frustration as she glanced at me. I wasn’t sure what exactly she expected from me. Getting two whole debut stage songs should have been quite an achievement, shouldn't it? After a moment, it was Yona’s turn for the dry rehearsal, and the kids moved to the audience seats to watch and monitor. In the corridor leading to the stage, Alya quietly slipped beside me and mumbled. "Tch, I’m disappointed, Ppwak." "In what way?" "You should have pressed the PD to cut their stage." "Who are 'they'? EyeContact?" "Yeah. If you had managed that, I might have given you 49 points. But as it stands, it’s a 12 out of 1000." "How am I supposed to cut a scheduled performance on the day?" "I would have." "But I’m not you." "At the very least, you should have demanded a public apology." "Even if they apologize, it would just be an insincere formality. Why bother?" "Stop splitting hairs. Do you want to get scolded? Just follow my instructions, Ppwak." "Then clearly instruct me. You said I could do it my way." "I didn’t think you’d be this clueless." "Hey, even being a rookie performing two full songs on a debut stage is a first." "Don’t brag before I kick you." "Oh..." "... Are the places where that goon hit you okay?" "I don’t even remember where I got hit." "You’re terribly weak. It was pathetic enough to make me tear up." "I’m sorry. It was my first time fighting anyone properly..." "So, can you protect me or the sisters like that?" "Isn’t that what the security team is for? You just take them along." "Don’t you have any pride, Ppwak? If that were me, I'd drown myself in a dish of water." "I’m sorry." Alya let out a faint scoff. "I guess Ppwak has to be Ppwak. If you handled things well and were a good fighter, it wouldn’t be you." "Hey, I know it sounds like an excuse, but I didn’t want to say it." "Then don’t. I’m not keen to hear it either." "But just hear me out this once." "If you have to." "I was a complete outsider to this industry, and it’s been less than a week since I started learning the ropes from Director Kim. This is my first network task, so isn’t it normal for me to be green?" "Fine, stop whining like a kid. From now on, I’ll call you Whiner." "Do you know my real name?" "Kwok Kwok Ppwak Whiner Genius Kim Yoon-ho." "Wow... That’s... impressive..." "Do you know my full name, Whiny?" Heh, let me surprise you. I opened the info panel and recited her full name. "Haja Alya Sururul Bolkiah." "Oh. Oh wow. Not bad! I’ll give you a point for that." "See, I’m actually decent at this. By the way, what does Alya mean?" "Noble." "Ah..." I swallowed back my words that it didn’t suit her at all. Alya, speaking of my work again, commented with a hint of praise. "Still, since you narrowly avoided the worst, don’t be too down. You’re the first guy to score 12 points with me, Whiny." "What’s with that third-rate drama line?" "You’ll get scolded for real." "I guess I'm just awkward with compliments." "You should acknowledge what you do well. Though by my standards, I'd instantly fire you, but because the sisters like you and you’re nice, I’ll let it slide. After all, being nice is a skill, too." "I’m not nice though." "Yeah, you are. Without that, we wouldn’t be speaking." "Thanks..." I wasn’t exactly thrilled, but knowing Alya’s sincerity, it didn’t irritate me as much as before. As I engaged in trivial talks with Alya, we arrived at the entrance to the audience section leading to the stage. The thick soundproof door opened, allowing Seo-won, Eun-bit, and Hong-yi to go down first and take their seats. On the stage, a male idol group, performing before Yona, rehearsed with nametags on their chests. Alya's eyes widened upon seeing the performance. "Whiny. This is my first time seeing a stage live." "You've seen a lot of performances, haven’t you?" "Not those kind, I mean broadcast stages." "Ah, I see. Smaller than you thought, right?" "Yeah, it's surprisingly small. Kind of like your capabilities, Whiny." "...Let's head down." I descended the stairs first. Alya's voice followed, noticeably tense. "Hold on, I feel weirdly nervous, even though I'm not the one going on stage myself..." Alya was moving down the stairs like someone who had never done so before, her face visibly stiff. Her breathing was slightly rough, and the purple aura surrounding her pulsed irregularly. It seemed to be another bout of dizziness from her chronic condition. Now that I think about it, during the early days of dorm life, she regularly received injections, but I hadn't seen that recently. There was no nurse or medical staff around. What to do? "What's wrong? Are you feeling very unwell?" I asked, and Alya's hand grasped my shoulder. It was unusual for her to initiate physical contact. Her hand was clammy and trembling. "Whiny. I feel like I’m going to throw up. I can’t go in..." "Should we go to the emergency room?" "No, it’s not that. I just feel strange inside and suffocated... I want to get some air..." "Hold on, let me tell the others. I’ll be right back." If I say Alya's not feeling well, they’ll all come rushing out. I told the others we were just going to the car for a bit, and took Alya to an open space behind the building where broadcast props were stored. She was sweating coldly and groaning weakly, much like someone suffering from indigestion. Still, she didn’t forget to ask for her personal chair from the waiting room. I set up the chair for Alya to sit on and pulled out my phone. "I’ll call Cassie." "No need. I feel a bit better now that I’m outside. Phew..." "Are you really okay?" "I know my body best, so don’t worry. If it was really that bad, I would’ve said something first." Thankfully, Alya recovered quickly. However, she seemed a bit startled, as if she had a rough idea of what had triggered it. "Cameras..." "Cameras?" "You know, those big cameras in front of the stage." She was referring to the EFP cameras used for broadcast filming. "Oh, why?" "The moment I saw them, I got chills all over and felt weak. My chest felt tight and I thought I’d vomit." "Why would that happen? Do you have bad memories related to cameras?" "But this is my first time at a broadcasting station, even seeing such cameras. It’s the first time seeing them in person." "Then it might not have to do with the cameras." "No, I’m sure. The moment I saw them, I felt awful." "Could it be camera anxiety or something?" "Whiny." "Huh?" "What am I going to do? I’m terrified of them. When on stage, they’re going to film me, right? I feel like I won’t be able to do anything..." A look of dejection crossed Alya’s face, a demeanor I hadn’t seen on her before. Come to think of it, this wasn't a trivial issue. An entertainer being scared of cameras is like a chef fearing knives or a soccer player fearing the ball. I called Cassie to explain the situation. She mentioned this was the first she’d heard of it too and suggested it might be panic disorder symptoms. She promised to book an appointment at the psychiatry clinic where the kids have group counseling sessions. *** To accommodate Alya’s newfound camera phobia, we decided to monitor Yona’s stage appearance on the waiting room TV instead of going live. "Oh, it’s starting." Yona took the opening stage. As the advertisement ended, ‘Open’ music began, and the camera panned from left to right. Yona and her backup dancers began their choreography, with captions appearing on the screen. Open ― Yona Lyrics by Next-door Lyricist Composed by Yeom Big-hands "Pfft, Teacher Yeom’s nickname is hilariously cheesy!" "Yona looks amazing on screen, she totally looks like a celebrity." "Well, she’s naturally pretty... But she looks a bit chubbier on screen. If Yona looks like that, I’d come off like a total pig... Should I aim for the early 50 kilos?" "Usually, screens make you look a bit plumper. I felt like my face was about to burst when I saw myself on screen during No Dew." "Ah, Yona’s killing it out there. Totally incredible. Alya is totally mesmerized." "Guys, Alya’s picking up your informal speech. What if she talks like that during a broadcast? It’s going to get edited out completely." "Don’t worry, Seo-won. Alya won’t be doing any interviews or variety shows anyway." Samalu, the featuring rapper, couldn’t join the broadcast due to a prior commitment. So, a solo dance choreographed by Alya was inserted during Samalu’s rap part, and personally, I thought it worked out better. The precise arm movements and steps perfectly synchronized with the shattering beat gave the impression of a professional dancer rather than a singer. Hong-yi clapped softly in admiration. "Wow... I've always thought it during practice, but Yona really is something. I still can’t believe I’m on the same team as her..." "But director, since Samalu’s rap isn't there, wouldn't it be nice to have Hong-yi perform?" Seo-won suggested. This had come up during a meeting, but the consensus was that the lyrics written from a male perspective wouldn’t suit Hong-yi. After explaining this, Eun-bit came up with a different suggestion. "Then can’t Hong-hong just write new lyrics?" "Yeah, that could work." "Wow! I want to see Hong performing on stage too! Let’s do it!" Yona had two more stage performances lined up. One is the recording for Arirang TV tomorrow, and the other is a music show on a public cable channel the day after. After another performance at a university event in Sokcho and a regional festival in Uijeongbu City, Yona's solo activities will come to an end. Although tomorrow's and the day after's broadcast stages are locked in due to the pre-released cue sheets, after listening to the kids’ suggestions, it seemed like Hong-yi could join the event stages. Since she hasn’t been on an official stage yet, it’ll serve as great experience before the group Upkey Girl debuts. "How about performing at the events?" "Oh, no. I don't want to disrupt Yona's stage." "But you want to do it, right?" Hong-yi couldn’t immediately answer that question. Which meant she did want to. I made the decision promptly. "Then let’s have you join Friday and Saturday's events. You’ve got a lot of lyrics written already; you can pick one and arrange it a bit. I’ll talk to Beacon and you can consult with him to create something.” “Oh... okay…” Seizing the moment, I also spoke to Alya, who like Hong-yi, lacked stage experience. "Alya, do you want to try going on stage? You could pair up with Yona in the breaking dance part and add a routine." "I’m not particularly interested, but I feel challenged since Whiny seems to doubt my skills. Should I show you once?" "Yeah, please do. I’d love to see Alya dance on stage." "Geez, Whiny being whiny, such a whiner." "How about all of us going up as backup dancers? We all know the 'Open' choreography anyway." The suggestion came from road manager Jang-woo. He typically kept his thoughts to himself when Alya was around, but his tongue must have itched this time. It was such a great idea that I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it sooner. It’s not uncommon for team members to back up a fellow member who goes solo first, just like Yona. The kids all agreed it would be fun. Yona's public broadcast debut stage went off without a hitch. Not long after Yona returned to the waiting room post-performance, her name appeared for the first time on the trending search list. < Taming the Whining Alya of Noble Descent > End