Chapter 190: Born Yesterday

Dusty Kim Hyuna was sprawled comfortably on the sofa, guarding the remote control.

Today was the day of Stardust’s Music Bank performance for their pre-release track <Thicket>.

She was leisurely watching other teams’ stages, just waiting for her boys to come on.

“What are you watching?”

Thump—

A noisy uninvited guest flopped down on the sofa, shattering the peace.

Dragging in a half-eaten snack bag and making a mess of the floor was none other than Kim Hyuna’s younger brother.

He glanced at the TV with a disinterested expression.

“Oh, you were watching idols flailing around.”

“Flailing? What the hell…”

Even the words he used were crude…

Dusty Kim Hyuna grimaced in disgust and spat out harsh words.

“Hey, get lost.”

“What the hell? You think you bought the rights to this TV?”

“I was watching it first!”

“Is the next group a girl group? Then I’ll stay and watch.”

“Get lost. My boys are coming up.”

Kim Hyuna raised her voice, her irritation clearly audible.

She wanted to push her brother off the sofa right then and there, but she didn’t have time to waste fighting over something so petty.

Appearing with a cute headband was Music Bank’s MC Eunji and the special MC Do Seohan.

Kim Hyuna’s face, which had been gradually cooling down, lit up once again.

“Up next is Stardust’s ‘Thicket’.”

“How is the title track called ‘Thicket’? Gross!”

Thud—

Her younger brother, who had been acting out all this time, finally got a kick from Kim Hyuna.

The words “shut up” rose to her throat, but she couldn’t say them out loud.

Because the screen had just switched, and Stardust’s stage had begun.

“Wow…”

Dusty Kim Hyuna swallowed dryly and focused on the stage.

Even at a glance, it was clear a lot of effort had gone into the intricate stage setup.

The backdrop was lush with vibrant greenery.

Whether it was Doubles or the broadcast station, someone had clearly poured money into this.

Just as she was thinking that—

The camera zoomed in and showed Ha Junseo’s face.

Ha Junseo, who had stuck with either black or brown hair throughout most of their activities since debut.

Kim Hyuna’s mouth fell open in awe at Ha Junseo’s hair transformation.

‘Silver hair… they’ve lost their mind…’

She had always thought he had the perfect “mother-in-law approval” look, but surprisingly, the soft gray hair suited his clean-cut face quite well.

It even looked better in the broadcast than it did in the music video.

“This is heaven.”

Dusty Kim Hyuna unknowingly murmured to herself.

Our teddy bear is insanely handsome.

Even the peak of refreshing vibes. Just looking at the modified school uniform costume made a satisfied smile appear on her face.

‘He looks even younger.’

Give the coordi a raise.

She was admiring today’s hair, makeup, and outfit with her mouth slightly open when her brother’s voice suddenly cut in.

“But is that guy considered handsome?”

What nonsense was he about to spout now?

Kim Hyuna frowned and glared at her brother.

And sure enough, nonsense spewed from his shameless face.

“He’s not ugly, but doesn’t he kind of look like me?”

“Hey, get a grip on your conscience.”

Does that jerk not own a mirror?

Just as Kim Hyuna’s patience was wearing thin, fortunately, the intro of the song began to play.

And with it, her flaring anger cooled like it had never existed.

“I want to go back, back in time

I wandered, but in the end, I hold this ticket in my hand—”

Seo Ian’s soft tone echoed out.

He had said he’d been thinking a lot about vocals while preparing for this album, and it seemed like his skills had already improved.

‘No wonder no one can criticize their talent.’

Since Do Seohan had been injured, they probably had to urgently adjust the choreography in the final week.

And yet, how much must they have practiced in that short time for the performance to be so flawless?

Look at that synchronized choreography…

The timing is absolutely spot-on.

“Whoa, what the—why are they so good?”

Telling fans not to worry, and proving it on stage—our youngest.

Seohan soared on stage for the first time in a while.

“I dove in and found your Thicket, got this ticket

I won’t let go, I’ll trace back to you

I get a ticket for you

I get a ticket for you—”

Thicket and ticket.

The unique lyrics, playing on the sound of words, stuck in her ears.

It already felt good during the showcase, but it felt even more special when paired with the stage.

Kim Hyuna started nodding to the rhythm, caught up in the music.

‘Ah, it’s f*cking amazing…’

Most of all, the song itself was totally her type.

A refreshing yet grand melody. Her heart raced at the track that encapsulated Stardust’s debut era vibes.

And the members who had grown so much over the past year were tearing up the stage like maniacs.

They’re still rookies—are they even allowed to be this good?

Their confident command of the stage came across crystal-clear even through the screen.

Which is why there wasn’t a moment her smile faded.

“Ah…”

Her conclusion after watching the 3-minute and 27-second performance was clear.

“They killed it.”

Are our boys insane?

[If the pre-release track is already this good, what are they planning to do next?]

I’m seriously going feral waiting for the 2nd Full Album.

At this rate, if they keep working this hard, they’ll have no choice but to hit Billboard ㅠㅠ

Don’t know about Billboard, but they’ll definitely break into 1st tier soon.

└ 1st tier is pushing it LOL

└ With this growth trend, it’s honestly doable.

└ Tipple, The Way, Stardust—let’s gooo…

└ LMAO

└ I really think they’ll make it in within 3 years.

This album feels like it’s going to be a million-seller. I’ve got that vibe.

└ Think they’ll break a million in first-week sales?

└ That’s a stretch for first-week numbers LOL

But seriously, Doubles has been putting out amazing songs lately. I almost cried listening to Thicket.

└ It’s got that thing that just hits your heart.

└ Thank you for giving us a refreshing concept even for the pre-release… Please let our babies keep doing refreshing songs while they’re still young ㅠㅠ

└ Facts. They can’t do it once they get older ㅠㅠ

While the pre-release track’s stage was heating up the community with overwhelming reactions, Seohan, who had just come down from the stage, was holding onto his phone.

Seohan bit his lower lip, lost in thought for a moment.

The words Kim Woochan had said to him last week kept replaying in his mind.

‘Seohan, in 99 out of the 100 scenarios I’ve seen, you die.’

Kim Woochan had said himself that he saw multiple scenarios.

He hadn’t revealed the exact nature of his ability, but it could be assumed to be something close to seeing the future.

“99 out of 100… well, I guess that makes sense.”

Seohan nodded and muttered quietly.

He had died, and because of that, he’d returned—so Kim Woochan’s statement wasn’t exactly shocking.

But the next part had left a lingering discomfort.

‘Someday, you’re going to need me, Seohan.’

Ever since his return, nothing problematic had happened.

Considering he’d brought up “death” so suddenly, the days had been oddly peaceful.

So.

What could it possibly mean for him to need Kim Woochan?

Wanting to find that answer, Seohan had called the number Kim Woochan gave him.

He asked directly, but the answer that came back was completely bland.

—”You’ll know when the time comes.”

The vague response made him feel slightly anxious.

“When exactly is that?”

—”At the very least… after the concert ends?”

The concert wouldn’t wrap up until the end of April.

If he went by Kim Woochan’s words, it meant he’d have to wait quite a while.

There was one thing he wanted to be sure of.

“Is something going to happen to me?”

—”Maybe… maybe not…”

The way he kept dodging the question was definitely suspicious, but Seohan couldn’t press him any further.

After all, his last words had been positive.

—”But you’ll probably be fine.”

He couldn’t just take that on faith.

‘I can’t sit still—I need to investigate.’

Right then.

Knock knock knock—

With a knock at the door, Kang Siwoo poked his head in.

“Seohan, let’s start the live.”

“Okay!”

Seohan got up from his seat, following Kang Siwoo’s call.

.

.

.

It had been a while since they did a full group live.

Though there hadn’t been any real hiatus thanks to each member doing solo lives, it had been nearly two weeks since all seven of them went live together—so the viewer count shot up quickly.

“Shine bright! Hello, we’re Stardust!”

After a brief official greeting, Kang Siwoo spoke with a big smile.

The main reason for today’s live was actually to tease the concert.

“Everyone, ticketing’s next week, right?”

“That’s right!”

“And now there’s another reason you have to come.”

—”Guys ㅠㅠ you don’t need to say that, I already don’t have a seat ㅠㅠㅠ”

—”I can already see ticketing hell unfolding… LOL”

—”I once scored ground seats for Tipple’s concert… will the ticketing gods smile on me this time? Please…”

—”I’m not even asking for ground seats, just let me in”

The fans were already lamenting the brutal ticketing, predicting it would only get worse—but they still seemed eager to hear the concert spoiler.

Kang Siwoo clapped his hands and announced:

“We’re preparing a special unit stage!”

“Yaaaaaaaay!”

“This is soooo goooood!”

Seo Haim clapped excitedly and jumped out of his seat.

—”Our baby fennec is losing his mind over his first solo concert LOL”

—”LOL omg so cute, he’s making a whole scene”

—”Someone control Seo Haim’s energy LOL Mam-Seohan and Tofu-Ian are visibly getting their souls drained in real time”

“Yes, and we’re going to decide the special stages randomly right here.”

—”Random??”

—”Remnants of the self-content team… LOLLLLLL”

—”Whenever I think of roulette missions, I just remember Do Seohan getting dragged to the East Sea LOL”

Jin Sehyun chimed in beside Kang Siwoo to explain about the unit stage.

“That’s right. We each submitted the kind of stage concept we wanted to try ahead of time.”

“And now we’ll draw from those.”

“Let’s show you what’s in the pool.”

Seohan pulled a few slips from the container and began reading them out one by one.

“There’s a sentimental-Oriental concept… Oh, there’s a horror one.”

“Seohan, you absolutely want to avoid that one, right?”

“Yup.”

He was already getting treated like a ghost these days—it was troubling.

Seohan quickly shuffled through the slips to check them.

“This one’s retro style…”

Among them, a few had clearly impure intentions.

[Sexy (Abs essential – 5 stars)]

“Hey, come clean.”

Kang Siwoo held the slip up to the camera and questioned.

—”LOLOLOLOLOL who wrote that LOLLLLLL”

—”I’m losing it, feels like it’s either Cha Seongbin or Seo Haim LOL”

—”What are they going to do if they pull their own name? LOLLLL”

“AHAHAH! First of all, it wasn’t me~”

Cha Seongbin, laughing his head off, pointed at Seo Haim.

“Be honest. It was you, right?”

“Uh… It absolutely was not me.”

But Seo Haim’s pupils were visibly shaking.

—”That’s 100% Seo Haim’s handwriting LOL”

—”Oh dear, Haimie LOL”

—”He clearly never considered he might pick his own”

Jin Sehyun clicked his tongue and scolded Seo Haim.

“What are you going to do if you pull it?”

“I’m too baby-faced to do stuff like that.”

“Then make it happen.”

“Ah, no way. I wanna cancel.”

Seo Haim belatedly reached out to tear up the slip, but it was already too late.

The slips had all been tossed into the wooden container prepared by the manager-hyung.

“NOOOOO!”

“Okay, let’s draw then.”

“I’m scared! Really scared!”

“Well, duh! You’re the one who wrote that!”

“So… let’s say we keep the sexy concept, but make revealing optional?”

“For us, it’s optional. For Seo Haim, it’s mandatory.”

“Why me!”

“Because you brought it on yourself.”

“Seohan, protect me~! I was born yesterday!”

Crash bang boom.

Not a single moment went by in silence.

—”This is complete chaos LOL”

—”Stardust’s audio chaos, as usual”

—”LOL your genuine bestie vibes are so cute ㅠㅠ”

—”Cha Seongbin just said Do Seohan was born yesterday LOL that’s hilarious—but also true”

“Okay, we’re really drawing now! Everyone quiet down!”

Thanks to leader Kang Siwoo, things finally settled down a bit.

Shhh—

Seohan was the first to raise his hand.

“Which one do you want to get?”

“Me… something refreshing?”

“Why not sexy! Seohan, you can totally pull it off! You can do it!!”

“I’ve finally become self-aware.”

As long as he avoided horror and sexy, it would be fine.

Thinking the odds were low, he reached out without hesitation.

—”Do Seohan sexy prayer meta initiated”

—”It’s time for Sexy Hamster”

—”Seohan’s grown up… please be sexy, please”

“Inhale. Everyone… no.”

Seohan glanced at the comment window and shook his head.

His hesitation didn’t last long. He grabbed the slip that touched his fingers and pulled it out without delay.

“I’ll reveal it.”

“Here we go!”

“Are we getting sexy?”

Seohan swallowed dryly and unfolded the slip.

And then—

“Huh?”

In the shaky camera feed, only the first letter could barely be seen.

At the same time, Seohan suddenly stood up.

[S….]

Dash—

“Hey! Do Seohan’s running away!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep