207 - Upki Girl

< The Unnies Want to Work with the Manager Too > Thirty minutes before the camera rehearsal, conducted under the same conditions as the main stage. The Ripple Girls' waiting room was unusually chaotic and bustling today. The lipstick collaboration partner was present, making the place two or three times more hectic than usual. Jangwoo and I navigated through the empty spaces without disrupting the flow and captured these preparation processes through photos and videos. Seo-won and Ga-on, the main vocalists of each team, were sitting side by side receiving their makeup while loosening up their voices with basic vocal exercises. “Ahhh~ Oh no, my voice is completely shut. I told you, don't sleep before a performance.” “Hmm hmm hmm... Ah, um! Seo-won, can you pass me the water over there?” “Sure, here you go.” Right in front of me, Eunbit and Ri-ya were synchronizing their choreography. “No, it's one-two, stomp, stomp, and then wave.” “Okay. Watch how it feels, one-two, stomp, stomp, and... wave~” “Wave~ Oh, it feels much better. Spot on.” “You know I always nail it. Dame Tukoshida, ab ab, Dame Tukoshida, ab, ait!” When Eunbit started dancing to some trending alien dance, Ri-ya chased after her, mimicking her moves. “Dame Tukoshida, ab ab!” “Hey, calm down. Practice in the hallway.” Yona finally dropped the hammer. “No, we're done already, ab ab!” It's a literal battlefield. The incessant sounds of hair dryers and liquid sprays filled the air, and the fragrance of cosmetics mixed with the fresh heat emanating from the nine bodies was enough to make anyone dizzy. On regular days, the team consists of two stylists including the manager, and one salon assistant, totaling three staff members, but today, with the addition of the lipstick collaboration, five staff members were bustling around. At this moment, the manager stylist wielded the baton like a conductor. She managed Seo-won's hair while keeping track of the progress of the other members. “Eunbit, your bangs came loose again. Curl it with the iron.” “Yes, yes!” “Hey-eun, Hae-eun’s stockings keep slipping. We should fix it with silicone tape. Check next to the makeup box, there should be a zipper there.” “Got it!” “Okay, Seo-won’s done. Next, Hong, come sit.” “Yes...” Hong sluggishly rose from the sofa at the manager's command. While the others snacked on kimbap or sandwiches during makeup, she sipped on a protein shake by herself. This was because Hong’s physique was perilously balancing between glamorous and overweight, leading me to enforce a strict diet. Who else to blame but herself? Her habit of secretly snacking on cookies and chocolates given by fans was her downfall. When our eyes met in the mirror, she reached out pleadingly with a pitiful expression. “Gi-give me a chocolate. Please...” “No way. Who told you to sneak snacks like that?” “I think my sugar levels are dropping... I feel dizzy...” “No, they're not. I saw you drink that shake just before you sat down.” “You saw...” “Serves you right, bear.” Seo-won, who never misses a chance to tease Hong, inserted herself with a triumphant grin, bit into a kimbap, and taunted Hong. “Mmm~ Delicious, triple flavor. Want one, Hong?” “N-no thanks...” However, Hong’s gaze was already fixed on the kimbap in Seo-won’s hand, particularly on the edge piece she liked the most. Seo-won turned to me. “Manager, wouldn't it be okay to let her have just one?” “Stop teasing Hong. You know better than anyone not to provoke someone who's already sensitive.” “I’m not teasing. If you say yes, I'll give her one. She can eat the veggies without the rice and sausage. It's probably lower in calories than the shake.” That sounded less like kimbap and more like a vegetable roll. Yet, Hong looked at Seo-won with grateful eyes just for the offer. But I knew better. Seo-won wouldn't actually give it, and this would likely end in one-sided mockery. Still, it was amusing to watch. I stealthily recorded their tense interaction on video, chuckling to myself. “Seo-won, I said no fooling around.” “I'm serious. If I'm serious, can she have it?” With silence as my only response, Seo-won took it as consent. She carefully extracted the rice grains and approached Hong with the now slender roll. As always, it was the sight of a fox slowly approaching an unattainable prey like an elephant. “You want it?” “Han Seo-won, I'm warning you. If this is a joke, I won’t let it slide...” “I’m asking if you want it. I even left about ten grains of rice for you. Craving some carbs much?” “I do... I want it...” “Call me Unnie.” “Unnie.” “You’ll obey me?” “...Yeah...” Even if Seo-won hadn’t given it, they might need to call 911, but she knew what was best for her. She handed the vegetable roll with ten rice grains to Hong, scratching her chin like she would a pet and smirking slyly like a queen reveling in her control... “Good girl. If you listen well, I’ll give you more, piggy.” What is this decadent atmosphere? Maybe it was the tighter outfit or the full makeup, but watching Seo-won humiliate Hong, she seemed inexplicably sexy. And it wasn't just me. The others seemed to feel it too. Ri-ya, who had nestled herself between Jangwoo and me, mumbled in admiration with her mouth half-open. “Seo-won unnie's taming skills are top-notch. No wonder the fans are all about Seo-won. Right?” “Nah, the true fan whisperer is Yona.” “Yona's style is more like soothing and coaxing in a girlfriend mode, whereas Seo-won unnie is the queen who commands obedience.” “Isn't Hong considered the Queen of the group lately? Have you seen how she acts with the fans? She's like a total queen.” As Jangwoo shared his amusing observation, Ri-ya crinkled her nose playfully. “No, no. Hongie unnie is naturally an M, so she'll need to work harder to be a true queen. For now, Seo-won unnie is the real Queen of the team.” "No way. I can't give up the title of the Sexy Queen of the team. Everyone's beneath my feet." Even Eun-bit, the self-proclaimed sexy-opath, joined in, giggling as she leaned her head against my arm. “I’m wearing stockings today. So, what do you think, stocking ghost?” “Who are you calling a stocking ghost?” “You, who else?” I clenched my jaw, trying to suppress my irritation. “I've told you not to say things like that when we're around other people…” “There are no other people here. We're all one team, right?” Then the Lip Balm members joined in, playfully expressing their disappointment, asking if we weren't a team too. “We really want to get closer to you, Manager, but it feels like you're still drawing a line.” “No, it’s not like that. I really like Lip Balm. I've been a fan since the first shoot with Ripple Girls.” “Puh, you're lying! You liked Pramis, didn’t you?” Hae-eun pointed at me with a grin, and Tina chimed in. “Unnie, I've been observing, and you know when Manager Munho is lying or in a tight spot, his eyes start to shine more?” “Oh, I get that. And he blinks his eyes really hard?” “Exactly, that's what just happened. ‘I've loved Lip Balm so much,’ puhik!” They playfully exaggerated my expressions and gestures as they jested around. Ri-ya shook her head in mock disappointment. “Tsk, tsk, Mun-dang, you’re way too easy to read. Al-lee-ya always says maintaining a poker face is socializing 101.” “Do I really?” “Yes, oppa, you do. There's a certain expression you make.” Eun-bit agreed, returning to her question, nudging the tip of my sneaker with her toes. “So what do you think?” What should I say the outfit theme is today? With all nine having different styles, it's hard to describe in one word, but hashtags would be something like #Street #Funky #Unbalanced #Sheer #VividColors. Though it isn’t explicitly sexy, most tops are crop styles exposing the midriff, and the bottoms are all shorts and mini skirts. All custom-made for each member, of course. Eun-bit's outfit, the one she was so proud to show off, consisted of: An off-shoulder blouse with orange and purple gradients. A leather skirt with asymmetrical lengths. Semi-sheer black knee-high band stockings paired with rugged boots. Her hairstyle is a ponytail. But at some point during the dance practice, she had kicked off the boots and stood barefoot in the stockings. I glanced over, frowning slightly. “Why'd you take your shoes off?” “They hurt my feet.” “I’m tempted to give you a low kick.” “Why a low kick! Just tell me how I look. Don’t I look really pretty today? Huh? Huh? I so love the outfit today. Huh? Huh?” “Yeah. You look pretty. It's your job to look pretty with the stylist office we’ve contracted, so of course, you're pretty.” “Doesn't it look lively yet alluring?” “It does. Lively, alluring, just all that.” “Sexy, right?” “Yeah, sexy.” “Where's the sincerity?” “At least put some slippers on. Don't step on something sharp again, being the bad luck magnet you are.” “I can't find the slippers anywhere.” “I think I saw the Adidas sandals somewhere earlier... Ah, it'll be in Hong's bag.” “Oppa, can you get them for me? My feet mustn't get dirty.” “Alright, just stop with the baby talk.” “Why, don’t you like it?” No, it's... adorable, Eun-bit. “Yeah. I don’t like your whining voice.” Hong’s eco-bag was squashed beside the costume carrier. I reached in to retrieve the slippers, but a thumb-sized black object tumbled out with them. Curious, I looked closer to find it was a leftover quarter of a Snickers bar. Hmm. It seemed like it had been savored sparingly. I quietly disposed of it into the trash. Hong, watching me through the mirror, averted her eyes with a disappointed look. “Here, put them on, Eun-bit.” “Thank you, thank you.” “Ah, Manager is such a tsundere.” Lip Balm members, watching me help Eun-bit with her slippers, erupted into gossip. Whenever I do anything like this for the girls, they label me as a tsundere type or a cold but kind man. Lip Balm’s four members were just as loud and talkative as our girls. However, unlike ours, who could sometimes go off the rails, they were like a group of chic, young mothers chuckling about drama in a women-only sauna. “Did you watch Upkick Girls yesterday?” “Yeah, I did. Isn’t Manager Munho just the sweetest?”, “I wish my husband were like that, too.” Like that. I found conversing with them entertaining and emotionally fulfilling as well. Over the past week, as we've seen each other every day, we've grown quite close. Perhaps it’s because we're all similarly aged, but the conversations with this group are a bit more engaging than with my usual band of girls. And their beauty is just a bonus. “If you think about it, you only act tsundere with certain members?” Tina, the leader who loves analyzing things, seems to have figured out my behavior patterns. She smiled brilliantly as she pointed this out. Is there a side of me I'm unaware of? "Oh, really?" I asked, playing along, and she eagerly responded. (I had dropped the formalities with the kids by the third day.) “Yes, you generally let Yona, Hong, and Ri-ya do their own thing while you start off stern with Eun-bit and Seo-won but eventually give in to whatever they ask.” Now that she mentioned it, she wasn't wrong. I'm most comfortable with the ones I got to know first. Yona and Hong naturally handle things well without much guidance, and I've been trying to be more supportive of Ri-ya lately. Upon hearing Tina’s analysis, the teasing duo, Eun-bit and Seo-won, jumped in gleefully. “Right, right. He’s especially harsh with me!” “No way. Objectively speaking, he’s much sterner with me.” Then, Hae-eun, the oldest of Lip Balm ― although her profile says she's 27, she secretly confided in me that she's actually 32 ― brought us back to the main point. “Hey, kiddos, that's not what’s important. The key takeaway is that he treats everyone well. You guys just haven't experienced managers from other companies. If I could work with a manager like Munho forever, I'd consider it a blessing.” The other three members of Lip Balm echoed her sentiment like a chorus of Minions. “Silly them, they're just blissfully unaware.” “Sometimes, I want to work solely with our group, but watching Upkick Girls with Manager Munho makes me eager to join a company.” “Yeah, totally.” Perhaps feeling a tad defensive on behalf of the embattled duo, Yona stepped in to conclude the discussion. “Eun-bit and Seo-won unnie both know that nobody compares to our manager. If they’re overwhelmed by company stuff, they could just hire a separate road manager. Someone who handles driving and schedules would make things easier.” “That’s true. But finding the right person isn’t easy…” Just then, Kim Sangin, the manager responsible for Lip Balm's pickups for the week and the person who drove them to the station today, returned to the waiting room. He’d been negotiating with the production team on whether it was necessary for all teams to attend the other teams' rehearsals. Up to now, camera rehearsals involved all participating teams watching from the audience. But honestly, it served no real purpose. They could easily monitor their condition via the waiting room screens. “What did they say?” “Turns out, they have no idea why they do it either. They're just following what Director Jang Ho-joon originally established without question. That guy, since those days back on ‘Popular Song’ loves having singers line up just to flaunt his power.” Jang Ho-joon. The guy who lost his position because of us. “Who does he think he is? Some sort of king? After broadcasts, he’d have all singers line up in the hallway to greet him before he left. The FLANEL kids eventually just started ignoring it and went home.” “Ridiculous. So it was all for nothing?” “Yep, but starting today, we can just watch from our respective waiting rooms. Plus, we redrew the order for the rehearsals, and we’re first up.” “Manager Kim, you're truly golden!” The order of rehearsals can be like guard duty. Being either first or last is best for managing energy. Originally, our group ― Upkibalm (Upkick nurtured Lip Balm) ― was scheduled for third, but we were pushed to first place. “Wait, if we’re first, then we have to head out right away.” “I think the stage is ready. They’ll call us up soon.” “Everyone, you heard him, prep your name tags. Lip Balm folks, too.” “Yes!” Ten minutes later, they signaled standby. Costumes, full makeup, camera work, angles, audio systems — everything is carried out as it would in the actual competition, so about 70% of the final judgment is based on this rehearsal. Although the judges are absent, the production team consists of music program professionals, so their eyes and ears are pretty attuned. Lip Balm, during their final costume check, bristled with tension. “Oh gosh, I’m so nervous. I feel like my heart might explode, huff, puff!” “Me too. I think I'm more nervous than my first shoot with Ripple Girls.” Even veteran performers like them have reason to be anxious on stage. Currently, GIG ranks at 7th place, and Lip Balm sits 8th, separated by only 8 points. Our Upkibalm duo aims to secure 1st place, and then evaluate GIG and May Queens' rankings to determine the possibilities. Winning earns 20 points, and while we have plenty of points to spare, we plan to allocate all to Lip Balm. Of course, if GIG takes 2nd and secures additional points from mid-round bonus missions (which are chiefly luck-based and skill-independent), the outcome remains uncertain. “Upkibalm, please come out. Good luck!” The writer personally came to the waiting room to summon us. I was first out of the waiting room to kick off the ritual that started during the fifth mission. Standing at the entrance, the Upkick Girls would give me a hug and a pep talk as they passed by. It was Yona’s idea, claiming that doing so boldly in the hallway actually minimized needless misunderstandings. Upkick's inception began with Eun-bit. “Do well, Eun-bit!” “Got it, Eun-bit!” As we hugged, the top corner of her ‘Eun-bit’ name tag slightly came loose. “Hey, you didn’t pin one side of your name tag.” “Huh?” "Did you do that on purpose?" "No, I didn't!" "Stay still and stop flapping around." "Hee..." After securely pinning Eun-bit's name tag back onto her chest, I moved on to the next clingy fairy. "Alright, our main vocalist!" "Yes, our manager." "Hey, no touching the butt..." "Tsk..." Next up was our Yonnida. "How's our Yonnida’s condition today?" "Feeling yonna good." "Okay! Yonna is yonna yonna great!" "I’m off, see you." Next was our eternal dieter, who eats like a pig yet stays fit. "If you kill it at rehearsal, I'll give you half a Snickers. After all, you aren't you when you're hungry." "Oh, almond flavor?" "Okay!" "Yayyy!" Finally, our D—our rising star. "Aliya, what's the point of worrying?" "There's no need for Mun dangdang to worry!" "Who’s Upkick Girls' final boss?" "The truth of the truth: it's Jinya!" "Alright! Smash that stage!" "Yeeee!" Our writer, Jung So-jin, captured the whole scene on her phone, beaming with joy. Other groups came out to the hallway, giggling and cheering us on. It had become somewhat of a spectacle. "Upkick Girls, do your best! Fighting!" "Thank you!" "Manager Munho, you're so funny! I'm a fan!" The one who shouted out to me with her hands cupped around her mouth was Mini, the pure-hearted center of 'Your Girl.' Her long, black hair was as silky and smooth as ever. Long, straight hair is kawaii point +200. Isn't it the primal romance every man keeps in his heart? Mini says she's my fan? I felt like another love might fill the void that Hanul left. Right, love is best forgotten with more love. Though the fact that she said "funny" instead of "cool" is slightly unsettling... Feigning shyness, I followed the Upkick Girls as they made their way out. "Eh? Why aren't you leaving?" "Huh? Well..." The Lip Balm members, who hadn't yet left the waiting room, lingered awkwardly at the inner entrance. They watched us shyly, giggling amongst themselves. It seemed like they had something to say, so I asked, "What's up?" Then Ga-on, the youngest, spoke on behalf of the group. "Our unnies want to do that thing with the manager too." "Do what?" "The thing you just did with the Upkick Girls, haha!" < The Unnies Want to Work with the Manager Too > End