Chapter 320 : From the Ordinary to the Genius (1)
Chapter 320: From the Ordinary to the Genius (1)
“...A script?”
Ha Junseo's eyes widened.
Stardust's unanimously acknowledged actor-type member.
Even the fans seemed to think that Junseo hyung would naturally challenge acting someday, but the opportunity had come sooner than expected.
No, to be precise, maybe it wasn't early after all.
If my memory served me right, in my previous life, this was around the time when Ha Junseo first stepped into acting.
It probably wasn't entirely by choice.
After Lee Junhyuk's assault scandal broke out and everything became chaotic, Double즈 had desperately tried to bury the controversy by debuting their popular member, Ha Junseo, as an actor.
He had the perfect face for acting, and no matter what he did, he always threw himself into it with everything he had.
In fact, by the time the Stardust members had scattered like dust in my previous life, Ha Junseo had established himself fairly well as an actor.
If acting was the path he wanted to take, I'd support him wholeheartedly.
The problem was....
“Is it a drama? Or a movie?”
“A drama. Twelve episodes. It's airing on cable, and the role's surprisingly decent. Since it'll be your first time acting, you'll learn as you go.”
“Could I ask what the title is...?”
“Link to You.”
Ah.
A sigh escaped me involuntarily.
There was no way I wouldn't recognize that title.
It was the drama that had been completely scrapped after the male actor cast in it became embroiled in a school bullying scandal just before broadcast.
Based on a popular webtoon of the same name, it had already generated tremendous buzz before airing.
But when the lead actor—not just any cast member, but the lead—got caught in a school violence controversy, there was no choice except to start filming all over again.
And just like that, Ha Junseo's acting debut disappeared into dust.
With everything already so chaotic both inside and outside the group, Junseo hyung must have suffered even more because of it.
Since this offer had originally come when Stardust was struggling, I'd assumed we would never get involved with it in this life.
Yet here we were, receiving the script.
My thoughts became complicated.
Manager Song Jinha smiled as he looked at Ha Junseo.
“What do you think, Junseo?”
“Hmm... It is a little sudden....”
“Don't worry about us. Just do it.”
Seohaim said with sparkling eyes.
It seemed he'd figured out exactly what Junseo hyung was hesitating over.
Only three years since debut.
He probably thought it was still a little early to begin individual activities.
True to his former position as leader, Ha Junseo always had a tendency to put the team first.
Yet despite that, he was still hesitating....
Judging by his expression, he actually liked the offer.
Swallowing nervously, Ha Junseo stared silently at the proposal.
Cha Seongbin lightly patted him on the shoulder.
“Is this basically confirmed? Or should he just go to the audition first?”
“They approached us first, so it's almost certain.”
“Then that's even better. Junseo, do it.”
Ha Junseo smiled awkwardly as he absentmindedly flipped through the pages.
“I'm still not completely sure....”
“I oppose it.”
At my unexpected remark, everyone's attention shifted toward me.
“Huh...?”
Whether it was album concepts or songs was one thing, but I'd never opposed any member's personal activities before.
Even Ha Junseo looked genuinely surprised.
Pretending to remain calm, I spoke.
“The team's career is still on an upward trajectory. I think it's too early to move into acting. On top of that, we still have overseas tour schedules left.... We also have to consider hyung's physical condition.”
“That's true....”
Manager Song Jinha nodded thoughtfully.
“But the writer of this drama is incredibly famous....”
Writer Yoo Milha.
Manager Song Jinha finally mentioned the name.
“You've heard of them, right? They've written countless hit dramas.”
“Wow, they're writing this?”
“That's an insane lineup.”
That was exactly why Link to You had attracted so much attention before it even aired.
A wildly successful webtoon source material, plus a drama writer whose name alone guaranteed success.
Every cast member attached to the project was a major name as well, so naturally Double즈 wanted a piece of it.
Unfortunately, an idol's career wasn't very long.
Normally, after around seven years, the group would begin declining.
From that point onward, each member's solo career became important.
If someone looked like they had acting potential, the company naturally wanted to nurture them in advance.
Although the fact that we were only in our third year bothered me, success would be success if everything worked out.
Double즈 wanted to invest in a stock destined to rise.
The problem was...
That stock was about to be hit by an unforeseen disaster.
Ha Junseo's expression grew serious.
After thinking quietly for a moment, Kang Siwoo carefully spoke.
“I think it's a good opportunity.... If hyung can physically handle it, I think it'd be worth trying. But can you really film while preparing for the overseas tour?”
“If I decide to do it, then I'll just work myself to the bone.”
“Hyung, you're not going to collapse again, right?”
Jin Sehyeon inhaled quietly as he looked toward Ha Junseo.
Then he calmly added,
“But I agree too. If hyung thinks he can handle it... it'd be a shame to miss such a good opportunity.”
If Ha Junseo wanted to do it himself, none of us had the right to stop him.
Knowing that made it difficult for me to speak.
Manager Song Jinha handed a stack of documents to Ha Junseo.
“You're not playing the lead, so the filming schedule is actually shorter than you'd think. I checked—it doesn't overlap with the tour dates. Of course, you won't get any breaks in between, so it'll definitely be demanding. Let's leave the decision to Junseo.”
Finish filming one scene, fly overseas.
Return to Korea, film the next scene.
There was no doubt the schedule would grind a person down.
Even Jin Sehyeon's expression changed slightly after checking it.
“Wow... This is brutal.”
Ha Junseo silently continued looking over the schedule.
If the dates didn't overlap, he was exactly the type of person who would somehow make it work.
Running a finger along the papers, he quietly murmured,
“Americano....
Seven shots....”
See?
He was already calculating.
Ah.
My chest tightened.
If all that hardship at least resulted in something the world could see, it'd be one thing.
But knowing all of that effort would never even see the light of day...
It made me feel wronged on his behalf.
Closing my eyes tightly, I thought,
I really have to stop this somehow.
Two days later.
Music Bank waiting room.
Although Stardust was already in its third year and had many juniors beneath them now, we still hadn't quite shed our rookie image.
“Oh, Ha Junseo?”
Outside the restroom.
After washing his hands, Ha Junseo ran into Lee Jiwon, the sub-rapper of With Us.
A senior with eight years of experience.
Ha Junseo immediately greeted him with a crisp bow.
“Hello! I'm Ha Junseo from Stardust!”
“Nice to meet you. I'm Lee Jiwon. I've seen you on TV many times, but this is our first time meeting in person. Haha.”
The reason was simple.
This was With Us's first music show appearance in two years.
As expected from a group created by an agency specializing in actors, most of With Us's members had already transitioned into acting.
Although With Us hadn't succeeded as idols, every one of them had become successful actors.
Among them, the most successful at the moment was undoubtedly Lee Jiwon.
Having overcome the prejudice against idol-turned-actors, he'd established himself as a leading actor in numerous cable dramas, proving his acting ability.
I'd heard he was preparing another project recently....
“Junseo, you received that offer, didn't you?”
“Huh?”
“Link to You. I'm in that drama.”
I hadn't expected our paths to cross like this.
Ha Junseo's eyes widened.
“Oh! Senior, you're in this too? I don't remember seeing your name in the lineup.”
“Yeah. Writer Yoo Milha is famous, after all. The director's very experienced too. My role's fairly small, but with a lineup like this, there's no reason not to do it. I finalized everything just yesterday.”
Apparently, he'd been cast as the second male lead.
Smiling faintly, Lee Jiwon asked,
“It's a great opportunity. You're joining too, right, Junseo?”
At those words, Ha Junseo's expression darkened slightly.
“Ah... I'm still thinking about it....”
“Why would you even hesitate?”
“Huh?”
“Well, I suppose someone who's already as successful as you has the luxury of hesitating.”
Scratching the back of his head, Lee Jiwon looked at him.
“But eventually, everyone has to survive on their own. The successful members won't feed you for the rest of your life. Naturally, you've got to secure your own bowl of rice. That's how it was with our team.”
There was another meaning hidden within those words.
“Hopefully it never happens to you, but there's always one member who causes trouble.”
With Us hadn't had a bad start.
That was, until their main vocalist got caught in a dating scandal with a famous girl group member, and the aftermath eventually forced him to leave the group.
Dating itself wouldn't have been a huge issue.
But he went as far as creating a Stargram account to hint at his dates,
and then private account messages insulting fans were leaked as well.
The situation spiraled completely out of control.
Unfortunately, he had also been the group's most popular member, so the damage was even greater than expected.
After that, With Us steadily declined,
while Lee Jiwon successfully transitioned into acting.
So when he casually said those words...
He genuinely meant them.
“Junseo, what's your position?”
“Sub-rapper.”
“Same as me.”
A position that was neither here nor there.
Lee Jiwon was about to say exactly that before swallowing the rest of his words.
Still, the implication was obvious enough.
Ha Junseo smiled faintly and nodded.
“......”
He understood it better than anyone himself.
He was the only ordinary talent within the team.
He had reached this position through hard work alone.
An ordinary talent could never surpass a genius.
Seohaim, who had been overflowing with star quality since birth.
Cha Seongbin, talented enough to produce for other groups only three years after debut.
Kang Siwoo had never even been able to attend a proper music academy because of his family circumstances,
yet still debuted with main-rapper-level skills despite being heavily edited out.
As for Sehyeon and Ian, they were flawless as main vocalists.
Even the youngest, Seohan, completely dominated the stage whenever he performed.
Among those people...
What exactly was Ha Junseo's place?
It was something his trainer had once told him.
After a monthly evaluation, the trainer looked at him and said,
'Junseo, you're good at both rapping and singing. You're solid. That's good.'
'Yes! Thank you!'
'But....
You're not exceptional.'
At first, he hadn't understood those words.
His overall abilities were consistently good, so he usually ranked near the top in monthly evaluations.
But as time passed...
He gradually understood.
After seeing the monsters that made up Double즈,
the gap in talent became painfully obvious.
People who were insanely good at one thing.
At some point,
he had begun envying them.
Watching him lose his way for a while, the trainer had told him,
'Junseo....
Your face is exceptional, isn't it? Want to become an actor?'
'Huh?'
'You'd probably be good at acting. Junseo, you've got the face of someone who'll act well.'
At least acting remained an undiscovered field.
That made it easy to indulge in pleasant fantasies.
Maybe I'm actually talented at acting.
That was the beauty of remaining full of potential.
An unopened chocolate would always seem sweet.
Now that the chance to finally unwrap it had arrived,
Ha Junseo found himself hesitating once more.
'I oppose it.'
The youngest member's confident words.
They kept echoing inside his ears.