Chapter 422

Side Story (39)

When his turn came around, Lee Chise plopped a duffel bag from a sports brand onto the table. He glanced back and forth between the other members’ neat leather bags and his own bag, which looked remarkably free-spirited by comparison, then explained with a refreshing expression.

“It doesn’t really go with this outfit, but I went to work out this morning. So since I came to work straight from working out in my gym clothes … I brought a bag from the same brand to match!”

[You were famous for starting the tracksuit craze, and it looks like you still enjoy wearing them]

“I guess that’s what happens since I like comfortable clothes. Seras like them too.”

Ah, that damn tracksuit.

It was the first casual outfit that came to mind whenever anyone thought of Lee Chise.

‘Back in his early twenties, he wore that in a practice video, blew up the internet, and completely sold it out.’

Because of Lee Chise, those tracksuits practically became extinct in Korea for a while, and the fashion of middle and high school students became so uniform that it was almost comical, like everyone was following the lines on a music staff. It seemed he still wore them from time to time too. With his hair still as vividly blue as ever, he changed up the tracksuit colors so often that it felt like he had single-handedly claimed every color in Prism for himself.

In short, they weren’t my taste.

“Yutae-hyung doesn’t seem to like them very much, but I don’t care!”

“…Did you really need to say that?”

“Now, the first thing is, of course, a water bottle! When you’re working out and get thirsty halfway through, having to go get water interrupts your flow, right? To prevent that, I work out with a water bottle right beside me.”

He doesn’t even pretend to listen to me anymore.

I really raised him wrong…….

“Uh-oh, this is also from the same brand as the bag. You’re probably going to suspect that this is an advertisement……”

“……”

“Bingo!”

What?

The production team stared blankly at Lee Chise with expressions that made them look like their brains had short-circuited from his completely unpredictable way of speaking. Lee Chise then winked at the camera and showed off the brand logo.

“It’s not PPL. I’m actually a longtime advertising model for this brand.”

Ah, come to think of it, Lee Chise had also been a longtime model for that brand.

‘Right. Lee Chise has probably bought that brand an entire building by now, so of course they’d have him under contract.’

Didn’t I mention this before?

There was a period when a brand’s sales success or failure depended on whether they had managed to recruit Prism as their models. As a result, Prism went back and forth between various brands competing to seal a deal with us. Eventually, rather than having the entire group represent one brand, each member became an exclusive model for a brand they personally favored or whose image suited them well.

— Honestly, it’s such a flex that every member in a single group represents rival brands. That’s just classic Prism for you— It’s hilarious how each of them somehow ended up landing a brand that fits their individual image perfectly lol— The other members are all cool too, but Lee Chise is seriously legendary. He’s the one who started that tracksuit trend. Other male idols keep copying him and wearing it, but nobody pulls it off quite like the original— That brand had been perpetually stuck in third place in Korea, but during that era, they were undisputedly number one……

└ FR lol, I remember begging my mom to buy me one back then too

‘Thank God it wasn’t a product from a brand he’s not the model for.’

Since Prism shares a wardrobe, the members occasionally use products from brands that other members model in their private lives. But on a day like today, I suppose you could say Lee Chise was lucky to have brought a product from the brand he himself modeled for.

“This is a protein shake that comes in a pouch. I buy something like a protein almond milk from a convenience store and mix it in. There are crunchy bits like snacks and dried strawberries to chew on, and it’s really good. And this pouch contains toiletries like shampoo, body wash, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and facial cleanser. Since I have to shower after working out, I carry them around in these mini sizes.”

[You work out a lot. Does the company make you manage your physique?]

“No? Everyone at our company manages themselves. It applies equally to everyone, from Prism to the trainees.”

[Don’t you become lax if the company doesn’t manage you?]

For a moment, Lee Chise seemed genuinely unable to understand the production team’s question. He kept the smile around his lips awkwardly as his eyes rolled around. Then, as if he suddenly understood, he went, “Ah”, his eyes crinkling as he smiled before explaining calmly.

“YT Entertainment has everything you need within the company. There’s a cafeteria where you can eat whatever diet you want, a gym with a great view, and personal trainers to help you work out. In the end, it means that as long as you have a strong will of your own, that’s enough. We don’t bother holding onto people who don’t feel the need to manage themselves unless forced by the company. I believe everyone should be where they can truly be happy.”

In other words, he meant that anyone who couldn’t manage themselves like a professional had no place at our company.

He had said it in such a gentle tone, but perhaps it sounded cold to the production team, because someone muttered jokingly, “Oh, that’s actually scarier……”

Just as Lee Chise said, our company’s trainees were never subjected to things like mandatory weigh-ins or criticism about their body shape, unlike at other agencies.

‘Of course, if a kid comes to the New Talent Development Team on their own and says, I have a hard time managing this part myself, so I’d like some help, then we do conduct checkups after discussing the method they want, but…….’

That wasn’t all.

Practice hours were also self-directed, and the training system was set up so that they could sign up for whatever areas they wanted to work on themselves. Then, after the monthly evaluations, those who failed to meet the standards set by the company were quietly let go.

‘In the first place, everyone gets thoroughly screened out when they join the company, so there are hardly any trainees who don’t put in the work.’

There was simply no need for any emotional back-and-forth.

There was a clear reason why we had settled into this system.

Not once had I ever been disappointed by the people I had chosen, from Prism to Pantheion, because they showed a lack of effort. If anything, they worked so hard that I was the one telling them to stop.

Someone who didn’t work hard enough to cough up blood and grind their bones down was by my side, at our company?

To me, that would have been the abnormal thing.

“Wow……”

It wasn’t just me—the rest of the members were sitting there with completely unbothered expressions, as if everything Lee Chise said was just common sense. Naturally, nobody else could push the topic any further.

Sensing that the production team had fallen mostly silent and that the Q&A was coming to a reasonable end, Lee Chise rummaged through his bag again. Then his eyes suddenly lit up, and he pulled something out.

“Ah, this is something I really love. When you press the button, the lid opens and a round, blueberry-flavored bubble gum comes out. Whenever I have a schedule in Japan, I just buy a whole box of these. It’s my favorite kind of gum. I heard they have an orange flavor too, but I only eat the blueberry one.”

“……”

Just a moment ago, he had seemed so mature, and now he had suddenly turned into an elementary school kid.

Even when it comes to snacks, Lee Chise only likes ones that look like children’s toys.

It got to the point where, during our last world tour, I saw some SpongeX candy at a supermarket and couldn’t stop thinking about Lee Chise, so I bought it for him. It was a dispenser where you clicked open the character’s head to get a piece of candy, so it was exactly Lee Chise’s kind of thing.

As for why it had to be that particular character, it was because that was Lee Chise’s favorite. Whenever it’s playing on the living room TV, he’ll get drawn over like he’s under a spell and plop down on the sofa.

‘It really feels like I’m raising an elementary schooler…….’

Thanks to that, whenever any of the members happened to see that character while they were out, they’d all buy it and bring it home.

“……”

Stop buying them.

Vivid splashes of bright yello keeps multiplying throughout our all-black dorm interior.

“Those boring gums that come in neat little squares aren’t allowed in my bag. They absolutely have to be, yes, round. It feels good when I put two or three in my mouth at once and chew them.”

Jo Inchan watched Lee Chise explain this passionately with a fond smile.

It was a sight that made it difficult to tell who was the older brother and who was the younger one.

‘How can he talk this much about a piece of gum? Just how much does he like it?’

I don’t know how he manages to keep something so sweet in his mouth every single day without getting a headache.

If you go near Lee Chise, you can smell blueberries wafting around him along with his shampoo.

“And this is my wallet. It just has some cards and a little cash? I need it to pay for valet parking……”

His energy noticeably died down in an instant, as though he had no particular interest in his wallet. After roughly showing the wallet to the camera, Lee Chise turned his bag upside down and shook out the remaining contents onto the table.

“Lastly, my headset that I wear when I work out. I don’t normally carry it around. Earbuds are lighter. That’s everything in my bag.”

Once Lee Chise’s turn was over, Nam Yihwon nudged me.

“Hyung, my bag, please. It’s over there.”

At his request, I picked up the bag sitting nearby without thinking, only to stagger as my balance was thrown off.

When you pick something up, you generally adjust the amount of force you use based on the weight you visually estimate the object to have, don’t you? And when the actual weight is completely different from what you expected, the excess force makes your arm jerk upward.

That was exactly what happened.

“……”

If it was a tote bag made of high-end leather with accessories dangling all over it, of course you’d expect it to be heavy. But it weighed about as much as a reusable shopping bag.

In other words, it looked fancy on the outside, but it was basically an empty can on the inside.

I looked at Nam Yihwon with a questioning gaze, and he shrugged.

“I’m just spontaneous about everything. I hate carrying things around unnecessarily, and my philosophy is to just buy whatever I need at a convenience store, so there isn’t much in my bag.”

“Then why did you choose such a big, heavy-looking bag?”

“Because it’s pretty.”

“……”

Whether or not I was left speechless, Nam Yihwon opened the bag, raised his eyebrows, and said in a tone that sounded like he was surprised himself.

“The script for the drama I’m joining next … oh, there actually is something else in here? Some supplements or something?”

Don’t lie.

I’ve never seen that guy take supplements.

He’s the most reckless person I’ve ever seen when it comes to how he lives his life.

Just as I had that thought, Nam Yihwon pulled out a liver detox supplement with an awkward expression.

“Well, it’s better than supplements. It’s the hangover cure I’m a model for. Sangkwaekan! See you at the pharmacy?”

Nam Yihwon was notoriously known as one of the biggest drinkers in the entertainment industry.

Rumors had started going around like, ‘He drank several bottles of soju at a company dinner, but he was the only one who showed up for work the next day looking perfectly fine’, which ultimately landed him an endorsement deal for a hangover cure.

“This shoot is a hundred percent unscripted. I didn’t force myself to put this in my bag just because I’m the brand ambassador. Advertisers, you believe me, right?”

He even tried to score points with the advertisers with such a shamelessly nonchalant attitude that I couldn’t help laughing.

‘The lies just roll off his tongue.’

Although, considering he didn’t even say, ‘This stuff is really good’, while introducing it, maybe it wasn’t actually a lie.

Personally, I tend to use whatever people give me, so whenever I receive products as part of an endorsement, I use them without giving it much thought. Lee Chise is the same. Jo Inchan and Cha Woon, on the other hand, tend to avoid using other products because they feel guilty about not using the one they endorse.

But did Nam Yihwon, who was spontaneous about everything, got bored easily, and believed that a contract was just a contract, seem like the type to care about something like that?

“I’ve tried all of them, and this one is the best.”

In truth, the hangover cure Nam Yihwon actually took was a different brand with a patented formula. So where did he keep that one, you ask?

In Jo Inchan and Cha Woon’s bags.

“……”

See? Jo Inchan is looking at Nam Yihwon with slightly deadened eyes.

“And this is my wallet. It’s from the same brand as the bag, which is one of my favorite brands … one card, one ID, one driver’s license … and the dorm door lock card. I lose it pretty often, but luckily I have it today.”

[What do you do if you lose it?]

“Uh … I call one of the members.”

“……”

“Well, since there are a bunch of us living together, at least one person is bound to be home. Sometimes if I come back drunk they won’t open the door for me … but if I act pitiful enough, they’ll let me in. Haha. So yeah, that’s everything for me. The end.”

[Is that really everything? You carry so few things. Doesn’t it ever become inconvenient?]

“…If I don’t have something, I usually buy it or borrow it from Woon-hyung or Jo Inchan!”

Don’t say that so proudly.

“Prism is the best. I love Prism.”

Someone. kick him out.

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Translator’s Corner:

Poor Yutae’s blood pressure….

nearby cities already got rain and my roof still hasnt been fixed asdfghjkl let’s pray the next translator corner wont be about flood in my room guys….