46. Sense (2)
Baek Han-gyul, who was in the middle of the fan signing, thought while drinking water.
'Is Yoo Young hyung-nim... has a split personality?'
You might say it's talking nonsense, but Baek Han-gyul was serious.
That's because Yoo Young's performance today... no, his skill was something that any member would be surprised by.
The fan moved to the next seat, and Baek Han-gyul, who had lost track of time for a moment, focused on Yoo Young's voice.
Yoo Young happened to be addressing a fan who was getting everyone's attention.
"Wow, can I call you hyung?"
"Uh, uh. Yes."
"Why are you so stiff, hyung."
"Ah, because it's a male idol fan signing event."
He smiles while calling the big male fan, who is wearing a hat, "hyung."
It was a charming smile that even other men couldn't help but acknowledge, but to Baek Han-gyul, it was terrifying.
'You always smiled like that when you told me to practice.'
The sight was so scary that there was no other evil spirit like him.
However, the male fan in front shook his head while adjusting his hat.
"Aren't you upset? It's a man......."
"Why will I be upset? You're a precious fan who cheers us on. Don't think like that."
"Ah....... I'm not really a fan."
"Hmm? That's okay. Since we met like this today. How did you come here, hyung?"
He spoke affectionately to the person who said he wasn't a fan. He moved his hand but still kept his gaze fixed in front of him.
Baek Han-gyul tried hard to swallow his admiration.
'How on earth do you do that?'
No matter how much Baek Han-gyul practiced, it was difficult for him to sign and see the person at the same time.
And that skill of somehow continuing the conversation.
Baek Han-gyul was also used to talking to people and was unrivaled in friendliness.
But what about fan signing events... ... It felt a little different from talking to a friend, so it was still immature.
Even to Baek Han-gyul, Yoo Young was doing the fan signing event skillfully as if he was doing something he was used to.
"Next time, I'll work hard so that you can become our fan too."
"Yeaahh, okay. Work hard."
"Yes, so please watch our stage, that's a promise."
Meanwhile, Yoo Young, who completely stole the soul of a male fan (who said he wasn't a fan himself) and was eventually even talked informally, went to the next, and next, until it was Han-gyul's turn.
How does he know his fans' hearts so well? Like a programmed machine, he chooses exactly the answer and words the other person wants.
'Come to think of it, just like we call Bokhee Noona, Noona, we just have to not treat them with prejudice.'
Baek Han-gyul, who had realized it, nodded alone.
He learned a trick.
Before he knew it, the male fan from earlier had come up to Baek Han-gyul.
"Oh, how are you, hyung!"
Meanwhile, Yoo Young was wearing his fan sign item and trying to make eye contact with the camera. Yoo Young clicked his tongue internally while watching the other members acting foolishly.
'Tch. No matter what gender they are or what they say, you should always respond without panicking.'
There was no difference for male fans. Don't men often cheer for pro-gamers or foreign soccer players? So, it means that they can cheer for the same man simply because they like the song or for other reasons.
More than anything, fans don't necessarily have romantic feelings unconditionally.
Rather, many women enjoy growing together like raising a Tamagotchi rather than romantic feelings.
'This is why stereotypes are scary.'
It didn't matter if they weren't fans. We just had to somehow appeal to them to become fans.
'Well, the members are still rookies, so we have no choice but to gradually get them used to this situation.'
Still, despite my worries, they did their best. Some of them still had trouble continuing the conversation, but somehow they were able to continue.
After giving a heart a couple more times, the next person took their seat.
Yoo Young, who had completely erased his thoughts as if switching on the power, greeted them with a bright smile.
There were still many fans he had to meet.
***
- Intro face-to-face fan signing review #Yooyoung didn't even feel nervous and he spoke clearly, but when I was flustered and stuttered, he held my hand to tell me to relax ㅠㅠ (Yooyoung fan signing video)
- Since it was the first time for all the other kids to do a face-to-face fan signing, there was buffering when they answered, but Yoo Young alone answered everything like he was possessed ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└I think it's neat to add this and make a comment. I'm excited because I put them all together. At the time, it felt natural so it didn't feel too much.
└Right. I made eye contact with him during the autograph and thought to myself, "Is this your first time being an idol?!?" Like that ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
- When I felt that Intro was all visual members "The moment I saw them in real life." I'm not lying, my head went blank. This was my first time experiencing something like this.
- My original favorite was Yi-soo, but as soon as I made eye contact with Young, he became my favorite. His eye smile was crazy. He's a real fox.
└Huh...? I'm a little attracted to the fox Yoo Young
└Shut up, Yoo Young is a rabbit
└No, but really, fox-like Young is good ㅠㅠ
- The person right before that male fan, topic. To get to the point, Yoo Young was born to be an idol. Even if he had male fans, he would treat them the same as us even when he says he's not a fan (actually, I got a little annoyed when I heard that. Saying that to someone's face lol) he said it's okay and that they'll work harder so that hyung can become a fan too ㅅㅂ
└Ahhㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅜㅠ How did this happen?? He really makes you fall in love
└But how did a non-fan go to a fan signing? That's amazing
└I don't know if he lied and said he wasn't a fan because he was embarrassed or if there was a reason
└Oh, if that's the case, give me that seat, it's annoying
- I felt like Yoo Young was really a gifted person. I only went to the official broadcast for one day, but he remembers it and even tells me when he saw me. What kind of memory is that?
└Wow, I'm jealous that Young-i remembers you ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
└From what I've heard of the reviews, it seems like he memorized the fans he saw once. It's awesome...
- Guys!!! It's not that Young-i has bad eyesight, but his eyes hurt when he looks at the monitor for a long time, so he only wears blue light glasses!!! When he asked me if my eyesight was good, I said it wasn't, so I wore contact lenses, and he stared at my eyes and wrote on the PS that (real name) has pretty eyes too (Photo of Yoo Young's post-it note comment)
└Eyes too? Then he's saying other places are pretty too?
└Ah, I didn't know what to say at first so I just stayed still, and Young-i told me that I looked pretty in my clothes, and it's because of that
└That's crazy... I'm leaving the Dolphin faction and I will go to Fox Young from today
After checking all the fan signing reviews, I turned off and on my cell phone screen. I changed my phone type/model while changing my number, and I didn't feel familiar with the buttons.
- I think they're aiming too hard so it's not that great;; It lacks a fresh flavor
- I wanted to see his distorted expression so I wrote on a post-it, "You're the member I hate the mostㅎㅎ" but his expression didn't change at all and he just laughed. What should I do?
└What did he say while laughing?
└Please don't hate me too much, I feel so bad for you
└ㅋㅋㅋㅋ ugh ㅋㅋ If we keep doing this, aren't all the nerds going to come flocking in?
- It looks like the kid is already showing signs of maturity, and he'll meet a girl and play dirty.
└What is this jerk talking about now?
└Nyoung-i is cleaner than you
- I hate it so so so much that I can't control my facial expressions at fan signings I just answered like this out loud but Nyoung that little brat keeps talking to me without any clue ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
└ I don't think there's anyone else who has more insight><
└You won the iPhone iPad event. Please send me your address via DM (heart emoji icon)
I was reading SNS with my chin on my hand when someone grabbed my shoulder from behind. When I turned around, I saw Seol Yi-soo standing there.
"What are you doing?"
"Oh, I was just checking out the reactions from the fan signing event."
Seol Yi-soo nodded and sat down next to me and Hwang Bo-kyun. I glanced at him and asked..
"Where have you been, hyung?"
"I met Team Leader Lee Ki-ho on my way to the conference room and had a quick chat."
"How's Team Leader Lee's reaction?"
"Not bad. Sometimes when we meet, he buys me a drink and tells me to cheer up."
After that incident, Team Leader Lee Ki-ho changed his attitude toward us.
He's become a little more friendly. He often buys drinks for Seol Yi-soo and Lee A-ram and chats with them.
'Team Leader Lee Ki-ho... It's about time he starts to react.'
I squinted my eyes and placed my phone face down on the table.
"You should come over to us quickly so that the management team can catch their breath."
"Yeah, that's true."
"But didn't you say that you hired more people for the management team last time?"
Hwang Bo-kyun, who was sitting next to Seol Yi-soo, turned his neck and stretched. Then he added.
"The youngest among those who were selected this time is twenty-five years old."
"It's going to be hard."
I looked around the conference room as if it was nothing and replied casually. Perhaps because it wasn't the meeting time yet, there were no employees, and only our members were sitting quietly.
Ryu Hyun-seung flinched in anxiety at this.
"B-but... did we do something wrong? Or maybe the fan meeting didn't respond well...."
"Huh? No, it was fine."
It wasn't just a polite remark, but the response was really fine. All the members answered diligently, and everyone thought it was cute because it seemed like they were trying hard.
The most common opinion was, 'They look better up close.'
Before the guys could misunderstand anything strange, I shook my head and explained why we were in the conference room. Ji Youngheon was outside smoking a cigarette, so I was the only one who could explain.
"It was about deciding on a fandom name."
"Fandom name...... ?"
"Yes, you can think of it as a nickname for the fans."
Fandom name. Literally meaning fandom name, this is the identity of the fans and a nickname that they will have to use from now on.
Usually, the company gives the fandom name.
'Since the group name is like this, the fans wanted to give it a pretty name.'
After receiving the group name Intro, I decided not to trust the company's naming sense. That was the reason I didn't just leave it to the company and brought in the group members.
The guys were lost in their own thoughts, saying that they didn't know they would ask for their own opinions.
If there was one thing I overlooked, it was that these guys were the ones who said that the group name Intro was good too.
Starting with Ji Young-heon, who had finished smoking a cigarette, the employees entered the conference room.
Our greeting robot behavior was still there, but the atmosphere was much lighter than before. It was thanks to being promoted from kids with an uncertain future to rising stars.
Everyone went to their seats, and before going into the meeting, Team Leader Bae Hye-rim asked me.
"By any chance, Team Leader Lee......."
"It is in progress."
Team Leader Bae Hye-rim bit her lip. She seemed disappointed, but she seemed to know that Team Leader Lee Ki-ho was a tough opponent, so she seemed to back down easily.
Since they hired a new employee, they will be busy with new employee training for a while, so it will be difficult to pay attention to this.
"Okay, let's start the meeting."
"Yes. Let's check the activity results first and then proceed with the meeting."
I was lost in thought as I listened to the employee's voice calmly reciting the current situation. It had only been a month since we debuted and started activities, but it felt like half a year had passed.
"...That's it."
"Then let's start with deciding on a fandom name. Do Intro members have any opinions?"
Looking around at those who were giving up their turn as if they were doing a favor, the first one to express his opinion was... Baek Han-gyul.
"How about Outro?"
"Dismissed."
"Next."
As the opinions came out, Director Kwak In-hyuk and I spoke. This is the first time I've ever gotten along with that person this well.
Anyway, once one person took the lead, the other members also gathered their courage and began to speak their minds.
"How about Love Coin?"
"Buff (*a game's auxiliary skill that increases abilities)... Our concept is a game......."
"Binnie, isn't it okay?"
"Ripple, or Anyu. I recommend it."
It was truly hopeless.
Every time the members opened their mouths, the staff died. The only person who agreed with them was CEO Son Dong-young.
"Oh, everything is okay? I'm having trouble with this."
......Did you come up with the group name? Director Kwak In-hyuk turned his head, seemingly at a loss for words. Our eyes met.
"What do you think, General PD?"
"...I think we should think about it a little more seriously."
A direct translation would be that I didn't like anything. Director Kwak In-hyuk made a relieved expression, saying that there was at least one normal person. I sympathize with him today.
Hwang Bo-kyun, who saw us like that, asked bluntly. It was also strange to see them using formal language because it was a meeting place.
"So, General PD, do you have any fandom names that come to mind?"
I thought about it carefully and then said one word.
I had few choices because I had to think of a name that didn't overlap with other group fandoms.
"I've thought about shortening Lovein to 'Lovin'......."
The temperature around us quickly cooled down. Director Kwak In-hyuk's gaze seemed to be filled with thoughts like, 'You too...'
In the end, I quickly changed my words.
"...... Should we just have a private vote within the company?"
"Let's do that."
As a result of the meeting, it was decided that anyone affiliated with the label would write down a fandom name that they thought of and submit it, and once the candidates were gathered, we would have a vote among the company's employees.
We wanted to make it ourselves, but since everyone had such bad taste, we couldn't help it.
"I hope they come up with a good name."
"That's right."
Somehow, a solemn atmosphere hung in the air.
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