Chapter 1: Rebirth (1)

Even on a damn turbulent day, the sky was blue and birds sang.

That day was one of those days.

From the morning, a bomb was dropped that would sweep through the South Korean entertainment industry.

It was also a story about my ex‑job.

“Seohan‑ah, what is that?”

“Huh? What’s going on?”

The owner of the café where I worked part‑time pointed at the hot entertainment news flashing on the TV.

A panicked voice followed.

“You said it was the group you were almost going to join, right?”

“Stardust?”

I had denied it over and over that it never happened, but ever since they said I was the second alternate in the debut lineup at Doubles Entertainment—one of the top three agencies—I’d always heard that.

But why are they talking about Doubles now…

“They say that group blew up.”

“Huh?”

I turned my head without much thought—and froze in place.

It was news that made me doubt my own eyes.

[Stardust’s maknae member Choi Han surprises with marriage announcement]

[Is Choi Han of Stardust got her pregnant before marriage?]

[Marriage with a fan; whereabouts unknown ahead of Stardust’s contract renewal]

What?

“…what is that?”

Stardust was a top idol group whose members vanished like dust whenever they had a comeback.

One got arrested for drugs, another for assaulting a member, and the last one voluntarily left due to personal reasons.

Thus the group of seven dwindled to four…

After enduring all that hardship, and then rising to fame with a hit song, Stardust re‑established themselves as a top idol group—after recruiting one new member.

The problem was… that newly recruited maknae member.

He had pulled off a catastrophic scandal that would go down in entertainment history.

And that bastard was even younger than me.

My reaction was this:

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

I nearly dropped the bowl in my hand.

The online community had already flipped.

* What a fucking good team name lol Stardust space dust lolol

⨽ Become dust~ become dust~

⨽ The members all turned to dust lololol

⨽ This isn’t a time to laugh… should we still sell merchandise?

⨽ Choi Han merch? Do you think that’ll sell? lolol

⨽ Sell it to whoever’s gonna be his wife lol they said she’s a fan

⨽ Marry a fan? Marry a fan? Are they insane?

⨽ Wow, with the money we poured in, they’re gonna be buying baby food ^^

‑ How does someone screw up right before a comeback, seriously?

⨽ It wasn’t even just before the comeback lol contract renewal is next year

⨽ It’s all gone downhill lolol

⨽ After drunk‑driver idols, assault idols, drug idols, now we got baby‑daddy idols too, lol….

⨽ Is this for real?

⨽ Fans were tearing up posters—what a riot lolol

⨽ Looks like disbandment is just around the corner. What a waste….

– The ones who got kicked out before must feel bitter. Nothing ever blew up this big back then.

⨽ Bitter? Who the hell would feel bitter? LOL

⨽ Nothing blew up this big? Every single one of them left behind a scandal worthy of K‑pop history.

⨽ Aren’t they all probably holding a meeting in prison right now?

⨽ Better to be a baby daddy playing in a kids’ café than a drug dealer or a member‑beater.

⨽ Either way, from a fan’s perspective, it’s a total meltdown.

“Ha ha… insane.”

Laughter escaped me without meaning to.

Surviving at Doubles Entertainment, infamous for being brutal, was never easy.

I spent over five long years as a trainee and saw all sorts of things I wish I hadn’t.

Monthly evaluations that squeezed the life out of you. Other trainees rising like mad.

Choking, cold dismissals. Sometimes I ranked high in evaluations, and sometimes I plummeted.

Never knowing when I’d be kicked out, I trained without even eating properly.

Then came what I believed was my last chance: an audition program.

I ranked just one spot below the debut lineup.

Crumbling at the doorstep of my dream, I let go without lingering regrets.

Two years later, after being dropped from Doubles, I could’ve joined another agency, but I didn’t want to go through that suffocating life again.

An uncertain life.

At that point, I was already nineteen, and the risk of failing again was too big.

So the fact that these guys, who’d gotten the spot I’d given up on and regretted my whole life, threw it away with their own hands—it didn’t feel real.

If they were going to betray the trust of millions anyway, they shouldn’t have started at all.

If only I had gotten that spot instead…

If only I had debuted…

I pushed the ridiculous thought back down. With a bitter smile, I picked up the bowl again.

The café owner, seeing the complicated look on my face, suddenly spoke.

“…Do you still want to do it?”

“……”

I put down the scrubber and shrugged.

“If it were me, I think I could’ve done a little better.”

“Really?”

“I don’t think I would’ve betrayed the people who believed in me.”

The owner looked at me carefully and asked,

“Would it be hard to try now, even at this point?”

“Boss, I’m twenty‑five. No one would take me.”

“Kid, that’s still young.”

“I’m still young for other things. But not for being an idol.”

“Click. Such a young guy, talking nonsense.”

The boss clicked his tongue regretfully.

But what could I do? I was only speaking the truth. It was an impossible dream in this life.

Unless I was sent back to that time. If I could go back, now knowing what I lacked back then, I could’ve done a little better. Maybe even ranked just one place higher. Just one.

But that’s the kind of regret it was.

Regret that would never come true.

Ding‑a‑ling—

The chime on the café’s glass door rang out.

“Hello!”

I reflexively greeted the customer with a service smile.

A cold voice answered me.

“One hot iced Americano, please.”

“Hot iced… ah….”

Swaggering. Hands shoved in pockets, dressed in all black from head to toe.

Only the gleaming eyes were visible behind the mask.

But I had the strange feeling I’d seen them somewhere before.

That distinct chill approached.

That ominous silhouette was…

As I quickly scanned the person, the black mask spoke first.

“What the hell? You work here?”

—

Now I remembered. That ominous face, that annoyed tone of voice.

The jackass with a nasty temper since trainee days. The one behind the assault incident that put a crack in Stardust’s downfall.

Lee Junhyeok.

He was laughing with his feet up on the table like he was having the time of his life.

Even with a cigarette dangling from his lips—inside the café. Just because it was an empty morning didn’t mean he could do whatever he wanted.

“There’s no smoking indoors. Put it out.”

“Stardust’s gone to shit, you saw?”

“……”

“Ha, fuck those bastards. I wanted to see how well they’d do after kicking me out. They fucked up good. Idiots.”

Not like he was in any position to talk after going down the drain himself.

He wasn’t even behind the scenes about it—he punched a fellow member and manager at a fan signing event and got kicked out on the spot.

Everyone knew it wasn’t the group’s fault—it was all on this guy.

That nasty temper. That brainless attitude.

Even after all these years, nothing had changed.

“Ha Junseo, that bastard, I kinda feel sorry for him. Watching him shrivel in real-time with each scandal popping up around him was hilarious. Tried to act like a nice guy and caught a punch from me. He’s the most annoying hypocrite.”

“……”

“But is this café yours?”

“I’m working part-time while going to university.”

“…what a pathetic life.”

Like you’re any better.

Sure, he made enough money to fool around after getting kicked from Stardust, but I’d never once envied that kind of personality.

I bit my lower lip and forced a twisted smile, and Junhyeok chuckled as he continued.

“Hey, act like a normal person. Don’t walk around like a bum. That’s why you didn’t debut. Ah, did you get rejected elsewhere too?”

After quitting Doubles Entertainment, I hadn’t even looked at the industry again, but I had no desire to respond to that nonsense.

Junhyeok gave a mocking smirk. He was the one I fought against as a final rival.

It was obvious he wanted to win over me, even like this.

“If I’d known you’d end up broke and working a part-time job, I should’ve given you my debut spot. Right?”

Maybe it was because I’d heard such depressing news about my old agency this morning, or maybe it was just seeing his face again after so long.

Words slipped out that I shouldn’t have said.

“If you’d been loved more than you deserved, maybe you shouldn’t have lived like this.”

“What?”

The TV was still playing footage of Stardust’s scandalous members, those who were loved more than they ever deserved.

In the past, I might’ve been overwhelmed by Junhyeok’s cold glare—but today, it didn’t feel so scary.

“I mean exactly what I said. Maybe you shouldn’t have lived such a pathetic life.”

“What? You crazy bastard. You want to die?”

Whack.

Junhyeok suddenly grabbed my collar. He was the kind of guy who once grabbed and punched a fellow member in front of hundreds of fans. Of course he wouldn’t hold back now.

The café owner’s shout rang out belatedly.

“Seohan-ah! Hey, kid! You lunatics!”

It happened in an instant.

Crash.

My head slammed hard against the glass wall. I clenched my teeth and glared at Junhyeok.

I didn’t know where this rage was truly directed.

Maybe at the world that gave chances to pathetic people despite all my efforts.

At least, I didn’t live such a pathetic life that someone like you could judge me.

I worked hard. I gave my all in every moment.

With my collar gripped tight, the anger in my voice spilled out.

“I didn’t live like a loser like you did.”

“You wanna die?”

“Go ahead. Tomorrow’s entertainment news will feature me side by side with the pregnant maknae.”

“What? You think you’re worth—if I throw you a few bucks, you’d—”

Junhyeok’s grip tightened, and his eyes suddenly went blank.

Just moments ago, he couldn’t hide his rage—but now, his face looked completely vacant.

What the hell?

Did he finally go nuts?

I glanced at the frozen Junhyeok with a sour look.

Still holding my collar, he was staring out past the glass window like time had stopped.

“Shit….”

Following Junhyeok’s gaze—

The scene that stabbed through my vision was horrifying.

A truck loaded with steel beams barreling straight toward the café like a madman.

What the hell is that…?

What’s happening…

“…!”

Boom!

Crash.

The massive truck crashed into us.

There was no time to react.

“Ugh….”

With the sound of glass shattering, I lost consciousness.

—

Ugh.

My head felt like it was splitting open. I pressed hard on my temples and sighed.

Loud voices buzzed in my ears. I was sure I’d just been at the café.

Swish.

Someone placed a hand on my shoulder.

“…Whoa.”

Startled by the creepy sensation, I quickly lifted my head. My blurred vision slowly began to clear.

With a trembling voice, I spoke.

“Junseo-hyung?”

Stardust’s leader.

A face I hadn’t seen in forever suddenly popped into view.

His gaunt, pale face overlapped with the news I saw this morning, etching into my retina.

Why was he in front of me right now…

Throb.

My head felt like it was about to burst again. I grimaced and urgently asked,

“Why are you here? Aren’t you busy dealing with the scandal right now?”

With your maknae causing such a mess, you shouldn’t even be able to step outside.

…So why are you standing here like nothing happened?

Ha Junseo’s reaction was nothing I expected.

“Huh? What are you talking about? Did I get caught in some rumor?”

“What?”

Only then did I take in my surroundings. It wasn’t a café littered with glass shards.

It was an all-too-familiar practice room.

A chilling sense of déjà vu swept down my spine.

“What the… where is this…?”

At the same time, a dreadful realization flickered through my mind.

Junseo, oblivious to my panic, kept chattering with excitement.

“Whoa. Was that really a sighting post? Am I already famous? I haven’t even debuted yet—what’s going on?”

Too vivid to be a dream.

And more than that—he looked way too young.

Looking up at Junseo’s face, which seemed at least five years younger, I muttered under my breath.

No way.

“Holy shit.”

Had I really come back?

‘If only I had pushed those bastards aside and debuted instead…’

—and that “if” had just become reality.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep