The Moon’s comeback showcase, which ran for over an hour, finally drew to a triumphant close.
“Sir, please let me drive just for today.”
Because Kim Hyoseop insisted on taking the wheel himself, An Jiho climbed into the passenger seat carrying an odd feeling of discomfort.
“Whew.”
In contrast to his uneasy mind, his body felt snug and at the same time, the piled-up fatigue came crashing in.
“You all worked hard, so get some sleep. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”
No one answered. With the CEO at the wheel, dozing off felt rude. Instead, each member pulled out the phone sleeping in his pocket.
It was still much too early, but maybe—just maybe—someone had already posted showcase reviews in their fan café.
Tap.
Jiho leaned his head against the window and took out his own phone. His personal circle was tiny, so there was hardly anyone who might message him—spam texts at best.
Huh—?
He blinked at a text from Hyunseung. Curiosity won and his thumb tapped.
[hey, you crying? lol]
That was all. No follow-up.
“Ha—”
Jiho let out a short laugh at the blatant teasing. The man who claimed he had zero interest once a song left his hands had sent a surprise one-line letter last night and now this.
“Seriously….”
Jiho checked the message again.
“Why did he bother watching if he doesn’t care.”
He muttered a brusque complaint he himself had not intended aloud.
“Hm? Jiho, what was that?”
From the corner of his eye, the CEO had caught the tone.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing.”
From the back seat Joo Woomin chimed in.
“Hyung, come on, something’s up.”
“I said nothing.”
“Your ears are bright red.”
“My ears?”
“Yeah, feel if you’re running a fever.”
At once Choi Jeonghyuk and Lee Chanyoung leaned forward in concern.
“Y-you see….”
Embarrassed to worry them, Jiho had no real excuse. He could not exactly say he was mortified because the composer texted “ya, you crying? lol.”
“Maybe a bit of a cold coming on….”
He touched his forehead vaguely.
“Take care of yourself. This is only the beginning.”
Hyoseop knew nothing and only worried. The boy who had never caught so much as a cold was suddenly ill?
He really did overwork lately.
While he was thinking of buying immune-boosting vitamins, Jiho quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, the turnout today was bigger than expected. Felt great.”
The effect was immediate. Cramped together, the members burst into excited chatter.
“Right, every seat was filled, wasn’t it?”
“I nearly cried during the greeting.”
“It was like a dream. Wait, you didn’t hire crowd fillers, did you?”
The CEO protested in the rear-view mirror.
“If I had that money I’d buy you another good meal!”
Grinning, he added:
“Pre-orders topped five hundred, so we sent five-hundred showcase invites. Looks like everyone showed up.”
Jeonghyuk turned suddenly solemn.
“Guys.”
“Yeah?”
“What if we actually…”
He could not hold back a grin.
“Become overnight stars?”
No one dared say it outright, yet everyone hoped for exactly that. They had all dreamed of it for years.
“Could really happen.”
Woomin repeated the words with forced seriousness, then laughed. The others snickered along.
Jiho nodded slightly.
Really… maybe it could.
Morning dawned.
Jiho forced open eyelids that felt glued shut. Their first music-show taping was tomorrow, so today they had to burn through a final practice. Releasing the song was only the beginning.
“Ha-ah.”
He yawned and grabbed the phone on his nightstand.
[New messages + 34]
Rubbing his eyes, he checked again. An absurd number of alerts for his lonely phone.
“What in the world….”
Messages from estranged friends, old trainee mates, even family—congratulations, watched the showcase, and a strange word “응헌” he had never seen.
One stood out: the composer.
[ya, you crying? lol]
[so, you crying lol]
[omg lol he’s crying]
Jiho set the phone down, face burning.
Come to think of it—composer HS had a strangely possessive streak.
“Why is he making sure like this…”
Feeling the urge to crawl under a rock, Jiho pulled the blanket over his head.
Bzzzz—!
His phone rang.
[Jeonghyuk]
The sleepiest member, calling at dawn?
“What is it this early?”
Jeonghyuk’s lively voice filled the speaker.
—Eungheon hyung! Did you sleep?
“Wrong number? I’m not Eungheon—”
He remembered the mysterious “응헌” in all those texts.
—No, I called right! Our Eungheon hyung!
“Why am I Eungheon?”
—I’ll send you a link, look right now!
He hung up. Moments later a link arrived.
[Legendary clip from The Moon showcase ㄷㄷ]
Likes 30,000; Comments 1.8 k
It was a Shorts of yesterday’s stage.
“Why so many likes…?”
Jiho sat upright and opened comments.
⤷ One clip and I’m stanning The Moon for real.
⤷ How can anyone not fall for them? Tell me how, please…
He scrolled, intrigued. Then another message from Jeonghyuk.
[Remember what we said about becoming overnight stars?]
[Congrats, it happened.]
[new,tube.com]
Jiho clicked.
[The legendary “Eungheon” crying video]
Likes 40,000; Comments 2.1 k
Close-up of his own tear-stained face.
—“Well, anyway, e-eungheon… I owe you.”
Who is this dork…
He clapped a hand over his mouth and read the comments.
⤷ Perfect hair, broad shoulders, baby whimper “e-eungheon,” perfection.
⤷ Is that live? Breath never wavers, insane.
⤷ Why did he cry? What happened?
⤷ Reading a fan letter after years as nobodies, got overwhelmed.
⤷ Maybe HS wrote that letter? They’re debuting with his song.
Jiho muttered, “Sweet?” A man who teased him with “ya, you crying? lol” was sweet? There was a mismatch somewhere.
Still, the thought that so many cared felt overwhelming. The “overnight star” dream from the van seemed one step closer.
Thanks to composer HS, no doubt.
Jiho leapt from bed. He wanted to get to the studio and practice one more time. The best repayment would be clear success.
Oh—
Might as well reply.
Just as he tried to exit the comments, one top comment caught his eye.
⤷ Dude, is he crying? He’s crying? Lol cryingㅋ (4,394 likes)
Jiho touched his reddening ear and made a vow.
He would never cry on camera again.
(T/N: Hahaha, I’m so sorry Jiho xD)
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