Chapter 201
November was passing by in many ways—a hectic month.
Contrary to the external performance of the group, which was on a steady rise with record-breaking initial sales of 1.88 million copies, chaos was occurring within the group with a completely different direction.
An attack by Sasaengs without warning.
Starting with someone who had been stalking Song Hyung-bin for a long time, there was now even a sasaeng who boldly spoke to me in front of our dorm.
For the sake of the members who were still recovering from the initial shock, I only told this to our manager.
Contrary to my hope that no further variables would arise in the future, a situation occurred that I was not worried about.
"Cough, cough!"
Kang Si-yoon's coughing started last night.
As morning came, Manager Hyung took Kang Si-yoon straight to the hospital.
Kang Si-yoon left the dorm, saying that it was nothing special, but what he got back to us was some pretty bad news.
"They said I had flu symptoms and that I should rest for a while."
"Flu?"
"These days, the flu is mutating and spreading here and there, so I guess the symptoms are diverse."
Manager Hyung explained the situation to us with a worried expression on his face.
"First of all, I think we'll have to do this week's activities without Siyoon. If a cold, especially the flu, spreads to you all, it'll be a big problem."
"Then should we re-plan the route without Si-yoon? It seems like it would be difficult due to time constraints."
The group performance part is very important, so if one member is missing, the group may not be in sync.
However, there is no time to change the entire movement and choreography to six people.
The third week of activities begins tomorrow.
"It has been decided that the movement and choreography will remain the same. The gap may be a bit concerning, but it is common sense that it is impossible to change the movement by tomorrow."
"That's right."
We nodded.
If one person is missing, the stage will look empty and awkward, but it can't be helped.
Chae Eun-gyu asked the most important question in a worried tone.
"Siyoon needs to recover quickly...."
"For now, I'm going to the hospital today to get a ringer injection. They said that if I continue to rest at the dorm, I'll get better soon, so I can't help but think positively."
Kang Si-yoon plans to use the empty room on the second floor of the dorm for the time being.
If he is in a room shared by three people, both Heo Yu-bin and I could get sick. So, isolation measures are essential.
Still, it's fortunate that he went to the hospital before his flu symptoms got worse.
Any disease is easier to treat if discovered early.
I calculated the time in my head.
'He has to come back in the 4th week, so I guess he has about a week to recover.'
If Kang Si-yoon can recover by this weekend, that would be the best-case scenario.
However, since rushing others won't make him get better quickly, we can only hope that he will get enough rest and recover his condition.
"Siyoon hyung is really stupid! I told you not to wash with cold water like that, but your taste is so weird."
Yoo Minha tried to speak in a bright voice.
Lately, with only bad things happening one after another, the atmosphere in the dorm has started to feel a bit gloomy.
As if conscious of that, Yoo Min-ha exposed Kang Si-yoon's misdeeds more energetically than usual.
I'm not sure if it's true or not.
"He really washed himself with cold water in the middle of winter?"
"Yes! He only drinks cold water every day."
"Ugh, somehow, when I went into the bathroom after Siyoon hyung came out of the shower, it felt cold."
Heo Yu-bin also intentionally swept his arms down with a slightly exaggerated gesture.
Adding to this, Ji Yoon-chul made a very serious suggestion.
"... From now on, we will only drink warm water and shower with warm water."
"You tell me to drink only warm water...?"
"Yes. I think it would be good to have an electric blanket while sleeping."
"Oh."
After hearing the youngest's words, Song Hyung-bin turned his gaze to manager hyung.
"Yoon-chul said that, hyung? Can you transport the electric blanket?"
"... Let me say it once."
He is a manager who always struggles in many ways.
Thanks to the efforts of the younger members, the atmosphere in the dorm, which was about to become gloomy due to the news of Kang Si-yoon's departure, gradually brightened up.
To keep this momentum going, I stood up and gave some words of determination.
"Until Siyoon gets his condition back, let's work harder so that we can win the trophy."
"Okay! I'll put five trophies on Siyoon's face!"
"If you raise it that much, his nose will break, Min-ha."
"It's not fake, so it's okay, right?"
"I might end up with a fake nose because of you."
"Aha!"
* * *
Seleves were quite surprised by the news of Kang Si-yoon's flu.
It's not that often that an agency posts a serious notice on the official fan cafe, but recently, this type of notice has been posted twice in a row.
Seleves wished that no more hardships would happen to the members, but it seems that heaven is not listening to their wishes.
However, fans were able to put their worries to rest since they said that it wasn't that serious and that he would get better with rest without hospitalization.
There were many posts in the community saying that they should go to music show studios and cheer them on with all their might so that the other members don't feel lonely.
Despite losing one member, Seleste continued to soar as they entered their third week of promotions.
It is a given that they will win first place on all three cable music shows, and they have won first place twice in a row on KBC, which is considered the most difficult for idol groups to win first place on, drawing cheers from fans.
Seleves couldn't help but feel excited.
They're feeling happy thinking that the dream of the terrestrial broadcasters' triple crown, which had been a long-cherished wish since time immemorial, was finally coming true.
Maybe it was a twist of fate, but the very next day, they came in second on MBS, unfortunately missing out on the Triple Crown.
Seleves who were on the scene and those who were watching from home on TV were all in shock.
It was frustrating that they narrowly missed first place, but seeing the members' faces on screen left them with even more regret.
The members applauded the news of Hwanjo, a solo singer who did not appear on TV, winning first place.
But there was a clear look of dissatisfaction in their eyes.
"Hi...."
And Kang Si-yoon, who was resting alone in his lodgings, also watched the MBS music show live.
Since Kang Si-yoon was always there, he knew how much the members would miss him.
Moreover....
'They must have tried to do more of my share.'
Kang Si-yoon, who is quick-witted, felt it instinctively.
Why do members who don't usually express their emotions in front of the camera look so regretful?
'I really can't control my condition.'
Kang Si-yoon scratched his head awkwardly.
Although Kang Si-yoon didn't want to catch the flu, he is the one who caused trouble for the team.
Thinking about the members who had promised to proudly return to the dorm with the trophy in their hands, he felt even more sorry.
Kang Si-yoon felt like he needed to quickly recover his condition and give all his energy on stage as much as he had rested.
"Cough, cough!"
It's been three days since he took medicine and rested, but his cough still persists.
Still, his fever has gone down, and his cough has definitely decreased compared to a few days ago, but it's not like it's decreased much.
To avoid spreading the virus to the members, they must work together only after he has completely recovered from the flu.
Even though his throat hurt, he had to eat well, so Kang Si-yoon headed to the kitchen.
He thought about what to eat for a moment, but he felt too lazy to cook, so he just took out some milk and cereal.
Kang Si-yoon, who usually enjoyed cooking and took pride in it, couldn't overcome his poor condition.
Kang Si-yoon tried hard to chew the cereal.
He has no appetite at all, but he felt a sense of duty to keep eating to replenish his calories.
'If it were normal, I would have eaten this amount in 10 minutes.'
As he was eating, more than 30 minutes had already passed.
Kang Si-yoon put the cereal bowl on the sink and tried to head back up to the second floor.
But then, faint footsteps were heard from the front door.
'The kids?'
If they had finished filming at MBS and left right away, it would have been time for the members to arrive.
Kang Si-yoon slowly walked towards the front door to greet the members.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
There was a single beep, along with the sound of the front door password being entered incorrectly.
Until this point, Kang Si-yoon had no thoughts.
Because sometimes Yoo Minha, who has an impatient personality, entered the password incorrectly.
He thought it might be the same this time too.
However.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
'What, what is it?'
He heard the mechanical sound of someone repeatedly tapping the front door password.
The warning sounds that rang out one after another struck Kang Si-yoon's eardrums.
Kang Si-yoon, who had reached right in front of the front door, instinctively stopped walking.
But the beings outside showed no sign of stopping.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Tiring, tiring!
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
A constant mechanical sound that rings without warning.
They kept pressing it so many times that he could only hear the sound of the password being pressed over and over again, without any warning sound.
"Hey, stop it."
A sound came out of Kang Si-yoon's mouth without him knowing it.
I don't like it.
I don't want to feel like this anymore.
But regardless of his will, waves of memories come crashing down.
The old nightmares that were buried forcibly rise to the tip of his chin, emitting a dark aura again.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
Kang Si-yoon felt his vision darkening.
His whole body started trembling as breathing became difficult.
A nausea rose from deep in his throat.
"Ugh―."
With a single groan, Kang Si-yoon collapsed in front of the front door.
The moment the sound of his body hitting the ground was heard, the people who had been mercilessly pressing on the front door ran away with clattering footsteps.
The mechanical sound disappeared.
However, Kang Si-yoon's brain was already consumed by memories he had forgotten.
An indescribable fear enveloped his whole body.
A monotonous electronic sound continued to ring in his head.
As the intensity grew, memories he had forgotten began to come back to him more clearly, one by one.
At that time, Kang Si-yoon was suffering from severe trauma.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
There was a password tapping sound again.
This time the doorknob turned, and the front door slowly began to open.
I couldn't stand it anymore.
Kang Si-yoon unconsciously grabbed his head and screamed.
"Ahhh!"
"Huh, huh? Siyoon hyung! Siyoon hyung, what's wrong!"
"Siyoon!"
"Are you okay, Siyoon?"
The ones who opened the front door were none other than the members.
Everyone came running at once upon seeing Kang Si-yoon collapse in front of the door, but it was after Kang Si-yoon's consciousness had faded.
"No way, that sound just now―!"
Manager Yeo Chang-min, who was following the members, immediately took out two cell phones.
One is to call an ambulance.
And another one to contact the company's security personnel.
"Hello? Team Leader Hwang, you have to come out now! They must have run away not long ago! Check all the CCTV footage and go after them right now! Oh, and take all the guys who were waiting!"
While he was exchanging urgent messages, Karis von Walden stood next to Kang Si-yoon.
I had a strange feeling.
'What······is this?'
What came into Karis' sight was none other than Kang Si-yoon's status window.
At the bottom of the status window, where there should have been only stats and characteristics, something in red was blinking.
[Status abnormality 'Atrophy' activated]
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