Chapter 937: I’m going to buy New Black at the supermarket (8)

The innocence of children is precious.

If we told the kids—who believed we were “market uncles”—“Actually, we’re not market uncles,” wouldn’t that just shatter their innocence?

That was why we had asked the managers for a favor.

Could you come in later and say, “It’s time to go back to the market~”?

Yes. We’ll handle it perfectly!

The scene we had in mind went like this:

NewBlack, it’s time to return to the market~!

Oh, it’s already that time. Kids! We have to head back to the market now~ Bye!

Then the children would wave goodbye with regretful faces—“Bye, uncles!”—and we’d say our goodbyes just as wistfully.

A perfect picture.

But as with most things in life, parting with children didn’t go the way we expected.

“Don’t take the uncles to the market!”

“No!”

“You’re bad guys!”

Our managers, dressed in suits and sunglasses, were chased out the front door by the kids.

The children still fumed with indignation.

Honestly, I couldn’t blame them.

“...I mean....”

Ri Hyuk rubbed his temples.

“That’s not what we meant when we asked them to prepare something....”

If suspicious men in sunglasses showed up and grabbed your arm saying, “It’s time to go back to the market,” anyone would react the same way.

“You can stay here!”

“You can live here! We have lots of rooms!”

The children, barely reaching our waists, surrounded us like a barricade.

“Guys.”

“Yeah!”

We smiled.

“We’re okay.”

“......”

“Really, we’re okay. Those men are people who protect us at the market.”

We explained the situation to the kids, who were still looking at us with distrust.

Even after nearly ten minutes of coaxing, they only half-listened.

Hye Won, who had placed a hand on Yeoul’s slumped shoulders, said,

“I think Yeoul just doesn’t want to say goodbye.”

“Is that it? You don’t want to say goodbye?”

At our question, Yeoul and her siblings, along with the other children, nodded.

Jiho grinned.

“If we leave, which uncle will you miss the most?”

“Uncle Bunny!”

“...We lost to an inanimate object.”

I gave my farewell.

“We’re really sad to say goodbye too, but we have to go work at the market. If we don’t go, people won’t be able to buy things there.”

“...Okay.”

“Let’s meet again next time if we get the chance.”

“...Okay!”

They still looked sad, but they seemed to understand.

Standing at the door, we waved.

“Bye!”

“See you at the market~!”

The children waved back.

And then—

Click.

The door closed, and we immediately let our bodies go limp.

“Whew.”

“...Haa.”

The sun had already set.

We stared blankly at the early evening sky.

“Wow....”

Carefully removing the microphones clipped to our clothes, I let out a laugh.

Wonseok, waiting outside, smiled.

“Good work.”

“That was no joke. I feel like I used as much stamina as when we fished for sailfish in Thailand. Kids have insane energy....”

As he pressed the elevator button, our eyes turned to the three road managers crouched in the corner.

Their suits were completely wrinkled from their ordeal.

We burst out laughing.

“Good work, everyone.”

“I don’t know if you can even call that work....”

Minsu, the biggest of them, scratched his head awkwardly.

“We just ended up delaying your wrap-up....”

“It’s fine. It actually made the segment funnier.”

Inside the elevator, Jiho asked,

“By the way, you were pretty good at acting. Didn’t you say you studied security?”

“I did extra work as a background actor in college. A lot of seniors were stunt actors, so I got gigs through them....”

“Ah.”

“I’ve always been interested in that field.”

That explained why it felt so natural.

Watching Minsu scratch the back of his head, I turned to Jongwan and Jiun, who were fixing their suits.

“Thank you.”

“...For what?”

“For preparing all this.”

From a manager’s perspective, it would’ve been easier to just say, “It’s time to go back to the market.”

But they’d gone as far as bringing suits for this small event.

I was genuinely grateful.

“If you’re grateful, buy us meat.”

Junghyun’s comment made me nod.

“Let’s celebrate finishing the shoot with a meat dinner.”

“...!”

“There’s a great beef place in Hannam-dong. Let’s all go together.”

“Thank you!”

The managers lit up.

So did we.

If we didn’t eat right now, we might collapse. It felt like we’d lost at least a kilo already.

“Should we go straight there?” Jongwan asked eagerly.

“No.”

I smiled.

“There’s one more thing to finish.”

In front of Building 104.

People strolled under the evening sky.

“Bibi, this way.”

“Woof!”

At first glance, it was an ordinary scene—residents walking their dogs.

Except there were more than ten people doing it in front of Building 104.

“Ahem.”

“...Mm.”

Residents who made eye contact exchanged awkward smiles and quickly looked away.

They’re here to see NewBlack too.

This is way too obvious....

A college student walking her dog pressed her hand to her forehead.

She wasn’t a Souffle—she was a foil.

Her mom had told her:

“They’re filming at Yeoul’s place.”

“They’ll probably leave in the evening.”

So she came out with her dog, hoping to run into them “naturally.”

But now there were over ten people doing the exact same thing.

So much for subtle.

Just as she swallowed her disappointment—

“Huh?!”

The NewBlack members walked out of the building.

And then immediately jogged over to her.

“Hello!”

She froze.

“...H-hello.”

“You came to see us, right?!”

At the bold question, she nodded before she could think.

“Here, give me your phone...”

Before she knew it, there was a selfie saved on her phone.

Plus a business card and a handwritten autograph in her hand.

“...Um....”

“Wondering how we knew you were waiting for us?”

“...Yes....”

Wooju spoke casually,

“This happens a lot when we film in rural areas. People suddenly come out to shake sesame seeds, or hum the trot songs we sang, or say ‘Our house has great food.’”

“...Ah....”

“We’re used to it.”

Then he looked at her with interest.

“Judging by your expression, you’re a foil.”

“...Yes.”

“Want to hear something good?”

“...Yes?”

He leaned in and whispered,

“If you become a Souffle, the benefits double.”

She laughed.

Ri Hyuk rattled off benefits like reading insurance terms.

“Official merchandise, early concert ticketing, lottery entries—”

“And unofficially, special street events when you run into us!”

“We’re looking for the next Squid Princess.”

Like salespeople, they whispered in unison.

“...Can I join right now?”

“...Uh, wait.”

They exchanged looks.

“...Oh right. Registration’s closed.”

“...Yes.”

“Sorry! You’ll have to wait until next spring~!”

They laughed brightly.

For some reason, it was slightly infuriating.

“We can’t keep it open year-round,” Biju explained. “Otherwise people only join for ticketing.”

He recommended joining later.

Strangely, it made her more interested.

Maybe being a fan of idols like this would actually be fun....

And just like that, another potential Souffle was born.

Meanwhile—

“Hmph.”

The elevator doors opened.

Yubin stepped out with her parents, pouting.

You said you’d sing for me!

They had promised.

But they’d left.

“....”

Her head lowered.

Her parents exchanged knowing smiles.

They already knew—

NewBlack was waiting outside.

“What’s wrong, Yubin?”

“...Nothing.”

“Really?”

“...Yeah.”

The moment they stepped outside—

“...?”

Music drifted through the air.

Yubin tilted her head—

Then her eyes widened.

Baekya!

NewBlack appeared and started singing live.

“...!”

Wooju approached her, singing.

With a gentleman’s gesture, he extended his hand—

And a flower appeared out of nowhere.

He winked.

Her face turned bright red.

In that moment, a child became a lifelong Souffle.

And—

Yeah. I’ll just join.

The college student nodded.

As NewBlack performed passionately in front of the apartment—

They gained new fans, one small moment at a time.

Filming for Seojun Lives at the Market ended.

After dinner, we collapsed in the dorm.

“Good work... everyone....”

“You too....”

We looked like melted squids.

“...But it was worth it....”

“Yeah....”

The goal of appearing on the show was the same as before—

To reach audiences who didn’t normally follow NewBlack.

“This is our stepping stone.”

I said,

“We’ll rise from 9th place in variety rankings... to top 3—”

I stopped.

“...Actually, 9th place isn’t bad.”

“Agreed.”

“Top 9 nationwide is impressive.”

“We’re singers. Do we really need to rank first in variety?”

“Too high feels distant.”

We were clearly rationalizing.

“No. No. We can’t get soft.”

“...Yeah.”

Why were tears forming?

The children’s laughter still echoed in my ears.

“Junghyun, put a patch on me.”

“I’m too tired... later....”

“Even you get tired...”

I picked up my phone.

Too exhausted to do anything, but not sleepy.

“Our articles are up.”

“Really?”

News about us being spotted at the market had spread.

Comments poured in.

“Hmm....”

“This wasn’t even that impactful....”

We hadn’t done anything flashy.

Just sang songs.

“...Feels weak.”

Then—

“What about Uncle Bunny?” Biju asked.

“...That.”

“The reaction seemed good.”

“...Yeah.”

“...Maybe we should prepare something.”

I tried to get up—

Then collapsed again.

“My whole body hurts....”

“Just a quick nap....”

And that was my last memory.

I had a nightmare.

I was in the Sausage Kingdom.

“You are... a sausage!”

“I’m not! I’m a spaceship!”

“Then fly.”

“...Why isn’t it working?”

“Exactly.”

“You are a sausage!”

“...No...!”

I was sentenced to life as army stew.

“...What does that even mean?”

Director Jo Gyuhwan burst out laughing.

“So, why did you want to meet?”

“...I wrote a children’s song yesterday.”

“A children’s song?”

I explained everything.

“And I want your opinion.”

“...Play it.”

I did.

As the song progressed—

His expression changed.

“....”

Then—

“Wait.”

“What?”

“When’s the broadcast?”

“In about two weeks.”

“...Two weeks?”

He stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“To A&R!”

He ran out.

“...Was it that good?”

I picked up the rabbit puppet.

“...Congrats. You might be debuting.”

Something told me—

This might become bigger than expected.