In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

After finishing the meal with Hailey’s family, we headed straight to the rehearsal studio we had booked in advance. It was the dance studio run by Clay Tyler.

[CLOSED]

The sign and even the lights out at the entrance made us smile.

“It’s closed, as expected.”

“I thought maybe they’d be hiding inside for a surprise...”

While Biju looked slightly disappointed, Junghyun approached a nearby potted plant.

“Found it. The key.”

No one was at Clay’s studio. They were on hiatus for planned remodeling.

Clay had run away.

“We’ve treated him so well.”

“Fed him, gave him snacks, even paid him...”

“That’s too much.”

As we swaggered into the studio, Ri Hyuk said,

“Honestly, we did make things hard for him. We should admit that.”

“Who was it that suggested tearing the clocks off the walls?”

“......”

Ri Hyuk, who had excitedly explained from a psychology book why department stores have no clocks, cleared his throat and approached the lobby bulletin board.

“It really looks like they’re starting remodeling.”

“Oh.”

“But the remodeling notice says it starts the day we came.”

We exchanged glances and laughed.

“It can’t be.”

“Right. No matter how much they dislike us, would they do that? This is just—what’s that word? Not self-awareness, but...?”

“Overconfidence, you idiot.”

“Don’t call me an idiot. I’m Singer of the Year, too.”

We sent a message of thanks to Clay for providing our daily rehearsal space and stepped inside. The large rooms—big enough for dozens of dancers—made us smile. It was only a shame we couldn’t see Clay and his daughter, but we’d agreed to have dinner with them on the day we left LA.

“They must think when it’s time, we can’t ask anything.”

“Heh heh heh...”

We high-fived as laughter echoed.

While everyone stretched and warmed up, Biju reviewed choreography videos and prepared in advance. We planned to run through Blue Moon with Hailey tomorrow morning, but our priority was preparing for the KMA stage in Hong Kong this year. The awards were on the second of next month—less than two weeks away.

“Shall we start?”

“Let’s go!”

We cheered, slapped our hands, and dove into rehearsal. Beginning with Empire and ending with Nakwhwa, we practiced the slightly altered dance breaks until the studio floor glittered with sweat.

“Phew...”

Each run drained us, and with so little time left, it felt intense. Normally during awards prep we’d have promotion schedules adding stress—but strangely, I felt okay. Maybe this U.S. promotion was bigger than we expected.

I’d heard we’d contracted with one of the largest and most famous record companies in the U.S., boosting our chances of entering the American market. If we broke through there, it could become our second-largest market after Japan.

Junghyun said, “We have two talk shows coming up, right?”

“Yeah.”

“They said both are really big?”

“Yeah. Both are on network TV.”

I learned there are six network broadcasters in the U.S., each with a late-night talk show—among the country’s most popular programs.

“They don’t have entertainment shows like ours?”

“Exactly. They must get bored.”

Though there are many variety shows, English-speaking regions overwhelmingly favor talk shows. Many writers and comedians aim to host them; being a famous talk-show host is akin to becoming the country’s top celebrity. Unlike in Korea, film or song promotions there begin and end on talk shows.

“And the shows are The Larry Gordon Show and... what was the other one?”

“The Ellen Dale Show.”

Both are top network shows.

Jiho, lying on the floor fanning his T-shirt and drying sweat, asked, “Is it like Jusehan and MYP in our country?”

“I don’t really know...”

“They’re popular, but since it’s not Korea, I don’t know what that feels like.”

“Right.”

I smiled. “Maybe that’s better.”

“Yeah. It might make us more nervous.”

To my surprise, Ri Hyuk agreed. “Why are you so nervous?”

“...Nuahup, cha!”

Our main vocalist tried to get up but winced from abdominal pain and slithered over like a grub. “They’re really famous shows...”

“Oh.”

“I feel like my heart might burst, but I’m not saying because I don’t want everyone else to worry.”

“Then why tell me?”

“It’s like in The Emperor’s New Clothes when the tailor shouts that the cloth is rotten! Kinda like that.”

“......”

“Ah, it’s a relief.”

Ri Hyuk gave a half-bewildered smile and wriggled back to his spot. Even now his echo reverberates in my ears:

I scratched my ear but couldn’t shake it. His clear voice and spinning face in front of me kept chanting famous... famous...

I rolled my eyes.

‘Seriously.’

‘What are you going to do?’

‘Junghyun....’

‘Stop it, I said stop.’

Junghyun, catching my eye with a sly smile like a genie in a lamp, curled up like a bean weevil.

“Well...”

I laughed. “We have nothing to lose. Let’s just enjoy the stages. Think of giving the fans a great show.”

“Why are you so nervous, hyung?”

“I have shaky hands.”

I hid my trembling hands behind my back and smiled.

Burbank, California.

North of downtown LA lies the city home to the headquarters of world-renowned film studios and media groups. The Larry Gordon Show is recorded in a studio here.

And.

“What the...?”

Employees from nearby companies who stepped out for lunch looked bewildered.

‘Why are there so many people?’

Everywhere they looked, people bustled. It felt like a theme park crowd, chatting and laughing. At least hundreds.

Coffee in hand, office workers stopped and asked,

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?”

“What’s going on here?”

A fan with red and blue taegeuk patterns on her cheeks shouted,

“We’re waiting for NewBlack!”

NewBlack...?

“A drama?”

“No. They’re a singer—NewBlack!”

“Oh.”

A question arose.

‘Who are they?’

Were they an up-and-coming singer? It was hard to believe that these media-savvy employees didn’t know the name. Yet there was clearly something to it. The Larry Gordon Show records around 5 PM, but this crowd had gathered hours earlier.

“NewBlack? Who is that?”

“A K-pop singer.”

“Oh...”

Clearly a foreign singer with many fans. Guessing they came to see the face, everyone resumed their steps, searching for a Wikipedia page titled The New Black. Meanwhile, the crowd kept growing.

“Who’s coming? Another British actor?”

“They’re a K-pop singer.”

“...I’ve never seen this many people in this area.”

From afar, people whispered near the building’s windows. As they watched with fascination, the Burbank Police Department went into emergency mode.

“...How many?”

“It’s rising, so it’s hard to estimate, but it could fill entire nearby streets.”

At projections of one to two thousand gathering, the police chief blinked.

“We have 93 officers on patrol.”

“...”

Even if they were fans of a foreign singer, the numbers were intimidating.

‘What is this situation...?’

Fans camping out to see visiting stars at talk shows happened often, but never like this—an almost army-like crowd.

“Nearby companies keep calling in. They’re scared something might happen.”

“Have patrol cars been dispatched?”

“Yes, we’ve sent them.”

Photos of fans waving placards arrived at headquarters.

[Sing for us. We’ll pave your flower path.]

[Congratulations on Artist of the Year!]

[Kim Biju, please look at me]

All in Hangul—unreadable to the officers—but the sight of them grinning with unreadable text felt ominous.

“On scene, keep it calm. Don’t provoke them.”

“Understood.”

While local police scrambled, the fans—Soufflés—waiting outside also gasped.

“Oh my.”

They had gathered to cheer for our small, precious group, but what was this sea of people? Passionate fans who camp out to see a celebrity are common, but never this many. Even among passionate fans, only a fraction would come—yet the streets were packed, flags waving like a presidential motorcade.

Amid their chatter, suddenly—

“Waaaaaah!”

An SUV resembling a celebrity vehicle pulled up in front of the talk-show studio. The door opened and a blue-haired beauty stepped out.

“Hailey!”

“It’s Hailey Blue!”

Hailey Blue, puzzled by the crowd, lowered her sunglasses and studied them.

“Who are you all waiting for?”

“For NewBlack!”

“Oh~”

Nodding as if understanding, Hailey recognized her own fan, gave a light autograph, then waved to the Soufflés.

“I’m the one who sang with NewBlack.”

“Waaaaah!”

“Good job.”

Yawning widely, Hailey led her bodyguards inside with a small laugh.

A few minutes later, a vehicle carrying NewBlack pulled up.

“The letter flies to Nasong~”

Rustic music drifted from the open window, someone humming along.

“Waaaaaah!”

A roar of excitement shook the area. Unaware of the crowd, the NewBlack members lounging with the window down sprang to their feet. When the vehicle stopped, the doors opened automatically and five heads poked out, like meerkats on patrol.

“Waaaaaah!”

The startled members ducked back inside.

‘Wait. This isn’t it.’

The Soufflés froze in confusion. The five heads popped out again.

“Waaaaaah?”

As the members tried to duck back in, the cheers shifted in pitch.

“Waaaaaah...”

Seeing the fans’ faces fall, the members climbed out. All wore bewildered expressions.

Wooju swallowed and asked, “Are these Hailey’s fans?”

From among the Soufflés, Hailey’s fans, cornered earlier, waved in response—faces full of fear. Seeing that, NewBlack members laughed and looked around at the crowd.

“They’re really our fans?”

“They are—!”

“All of them...?”

“That’s right!”

“......”

The members stared at each other, mouths agape, then erupted, “Waaaaaah!” in wild excitement.

“My goodness!”

“Oh goodness!”

“Hyungs, they’re all fans who came to see us!”

“Everyone calm down! I said calm down! Don’t freak out like this!”

“Ri Hyuk, it’s okay. Calm down.”

Fans laughed at the familiar scene, and NewBlack began their fan service. The warm atmosphere eased the officers’ nerves.

‘This is no threat at all.’

Seeing no danger, some officers wondered if they should get their own photo. Meanwhile, the talk-show staff peering from the studio window huddled nervously.

“Change it.”

“Huh?”

“The green room—change it. To something bigger.”

The Larry Gordon Show production team, terrified by the unprecedented crowd, scrambled to rearrange.

Wow.

Fans filled this street just to see us.

“Wow...”

It was a moving moment. At first, a special overseas activity felt no pressure, but arriving here, I was nervous. Like a foreign singer realizing their gig is on a major talk show for the first time. And in an unfamiliar country, the nerves doubled. To ease our tension, Soufflés recreated a Hello-Pyeong rest stop on site.

“Thank you!”

We couldn’t shake every hand, but we went among the fans snapping photos, waved, signed autographs.

“Can you sign my body?”

“No, Jiho says writing on skin with a marker shortens your life.”

“I don’t mind it shortening!”

“Because I’ll live long. We have to see each other for a long time.”

We thanked the fans holding up placards. The unexpected welcome moved me, and I felt tears welling. Fans sobbing behind their hands made it worse.

“Everyone, you’re the best.”

As we kept turning and waving, the cheers followed us. The heat was so intense, sweat beaded on my nose.

“This is unbelievable...”

“I’m still dazed. What just happened? Why are all these fans here?”

“Right. They came to see us...?”

“Wait a moment.”

Ri Hyuk leaned against a wall, his heart pounding. “This is cheap!”

“Those weak before the grand prize group aren’t needed.”

Junghyun’s solemn voice had us all laughing. Then a security guard inside checked our IDs. The guard, looking from the crowd to us, said in a slightly shaken voice, 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

“You must be famous.”

“We just have fans who came to greet us.”

“Greet you? If they come to greet you again, they’ll take over the studio.”

With a grin, he ushered us inside.

On the third floor of the studio, every time we greeted busy staff in the hall, curious eyes followed.

“But thanks to the fans... it really feels something. Right?”

“It feels a bit grand, doesn’t it?”

Our fans were the real powerhouse, yet our steps felt so stately.

“A fan’s success is a singer’s success.”

“Exactly.”

An intern guided us politely to our green room.

“Ohhh...!”

I thought foreign talk shows treated musical guests without commentary rooms poorly, from what Hailey said. But this was far from it.

A spacious green room. On plush sofas hung stylish framed art, and on the table, colorful fruits plus...

“Korean snacks!”

“Wow.”

Nearby—in LA—Korean snacks were provided too. The intern grinned and said,

“If you need anything, just call.”

“Thank you!”

Just as we sat and laughed on the sofa, I felt someone watching through the open door.

“......”

Hailey was peeking in, blinking. Lost in thought, she didn’t respond when we called, “Hailey!”

Leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, she looked at the “The New Black” sign on the green room door and asked,

“This is your green room?”

“Yes!”

“......?”

“What’s wrong?”

Hailey frowned.

“I was going to tell them to come to my room because I thought ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) this would be shabby. But it’s similar to mine.”

She smiled, satisfied.

“Well... in front of a crowd that could burn down the network building, anyone would be kind.”

“Ha ha ha ha!”

Truly a wise saying.