Second Try Idol

The echoes of Rings’ cheers floated to our ears. We whispered our slogan behind the curtain before making our way to the stage.

“Kyaaaak!"

The moment we came into view, the Rings erupted into thunderous applause, their cheers filling the entire space.

Snap, snap, snap, snap!

The sound of cameras clicked nonstop as the Rings at the front captured the moment, the flash adding a sparkle to the atmosphere. The air was charged with intimacy and camaraderie closer than ever before, wrapping around me in an indescribable warmth I hadn't felt in a long time.

Joo-Han confidently lifted the microphone. “On the count of three! One, two!"

“Hello! We are Chronos. It's a pleasure to meet you."

“Yaaaaay!!!" To my surprise, I recognized many faces among the sea of fans, perhaps from various music shows we'd been on.

“Have you all been waiting long?" When Goh Yoo-Joon shouted, a chorus of “No!” came back loud and clear.

Though responses came from all directions as they blended into discord, the overwhelming sentiment was clear. The Rings loved it.

“We are so grateful to kick off our comeback with a trophy, all thanks to you. It's an incredible honor."

“Thank you!"

“Thank you so much!"

Joo-Han looked backstage and nodded subtly before addressing the crowd again. “There's so much I'd like to share, but it seems we need to keep things moving. How about we save our chats for later and get things started?"

“Yes!!!!"

The incessant shutter sounds created a symphony of their own. Amidst the growing tension, the fan-signing event finally started. I forced a smile, trying to ease my stiff expression, and turned my attention to the first fan in line.

Jin-Sung was already engaged in conversation, signing an autograph for a fan at the far end. Despite his earlier nervousness, the fan had broken the ice and led to a smooth exchange. Next up was Goh Yoo-Joon. Right from the start, he dove into cheerful banter with a beaming smile.

Then it was my turn. As the next Ring approached, I licked my dry lips and managed a natural smile. “Hello."

“Hi there! Feeling nervous, oppa?"

“Huh?"

The fan leaned in to lock eyes with me and flashed a reassuring smile.

“Do I seem... nervous?" I asked

She gestured “just a bit” with her hands and a nod. Her gaze was filled with such warmth and friendliness, a stark contrast to the cold looks I had dreaded on my way here. Thankfully, her kindness melted away my fears in an instant and relaxed my tense muscles slightly. My hands still trembled, but thankfully, it wasn't noticeable while I was signing.

“It's my first time, so the nerves are kicking in. I hope it doesn't show too much."

“Don't worry. A bit of nervousness is endearing. I love you, oppa!" The fan extended her hand for a high-five. Smiling back, I high-fived back and she moved on to Joo-Han after a cheerful exchange.

Soon after, another fan stepped forward. “Hello! Gosh, I'm really shaking."

“Hello to you too."

This fan seemed even more nervous than I was, her voice quivering. It dawned on me then that everyone here was supportive, all of them rooting for me. This realization enveloped me in a comforting sense of belonging.

“Could you… Um, answer this question on the sticky note for me?"

“Pardon? Oh, sure! what is it?"

"Oh, right!"

[Who's the cutest and most lovable member? Why?

1. Joo-Han 2. Yoo-Joon 3. Me 4. Jin-Sung 5. Yoon-Chan]

“The cutest and most lovable? Hmm, tough call. No one really comes to mind."

After pondering for a moment, I scribbled down a cheeky response.

[6. Our Manager (Reason: Always smiles fondly at us from afar. Constantly changes his phone wallpaper to our photos)]

“Here you go!"

“Thanks a lot! Also, since we are of the same age, can I call you 'Hyun-Woo' next time?"

“Absolutely, I am looking forward to it."

The fan-signing event turned out to be more serene than anticipated. Engaging in high-fives and interlocking pinky fingers with Rings soon became our second nature, and I managed to do so without a hint of trembling hands now.

We used to be neatly presented at the beginning. However, as the autograph session unfolded, we found ourselves gradually wearing more accessories, from necklaces and bracelets to headbands and whimsical toy hats. It was as if we were layering up in an eclectic mix of game gear.

Among these items were cat ear headbands we used to scoff at, chokers that once felt like they were strangling us, and vibrant Hawaiian-style flower necklaces, adorned further with flower crowns to enhance the playful look.

The fans sitting in front of us relentlessly captured our amusingly decked-out appearance, showing no mercy with their cameras.

In the midst of this accessory frenzy, Goh Yoo-Joon, who was seated right next to me, playfully decided to place his headband on me. This pushed my patience to its brink. I was unable to hold back any longer, so I rounded up all the headbands I could find and piled them high on Goh Yoo-Joon's head in a playful act of retaliation. This playful scuffle escalated into a headlock situation.

Despite my discomfort, the fans seemed thoroughly entertained, convinced that they were witnessing the legendary friendly skirmish they had only heard rumors about. Instead of intervening, they chose to capture the moment, snapping away with their cameras.

After a series of lighthearted incidents, we concluded the signing session. Then, all members regrouped at the front of the table. The microphone, which had been with Joo-Han, was now passed around among us for a brief moment of conversation.

“We've been pondering what we could do to make this moment more engaging. Ideally, we'd dive into a random chat with you all, but acknowledging our shared shyness, we've come up with a special event instead.”

“Waaah!”

“Thank you for such an enthusiastic response! We are thrilled to introduce the 'Ask Us Anything!!!’”

I added, “As it suggests, this session is all about Chronos meeting any request from our Rings as long as they are possible!"

Goh Yoo-Joon said, “While we'd love to entertain requests from everyone here, time constraints mean we will have to limit this to just ten for now."

Yoon-Chan then stepped forward while holding a raffle box, signaling that the ticket numbers the fans received upon entry would determine their luck.

“Let's start this off with Yoon-Chan.”

“Alright." Yoon-Chan reached into the box to draw the first lucky number. “Ah, it's fan number five."

“Yes!!!"

The fan number five leaped up with an enthusiastic cheer, her excitement contagious, drawing laughter from those around. She asked, “Yoon-Chan, could you grace us with some aegyo, please?"

“Please show us your aegyo, Yoon-Chan hyung,” Jin-Sung playfully added.

Momentarily taken aback, Yoon-Chan blushed deeply but was encouraged by the applause from both the fans and his fellow members. “Okay, I will... I will give it my best shot.”

His face then flushed with a deeper shade of red.

“Our Yoon-Chan isn't really used to doing aegyo," I said.

“Let's give him some time to mentally prepare."

“Alright, I will do it!" Yoon-Chan declared, his face taking on a determined expression.

“Wow!"

We all gathered around Yoon-Chan, lending our support. With a shy smile, Yoon-Chan stammered, “I... I just really..."

His voice was filled with a mix of bashfulness and hesitation, unexpectedly charming.

“What is it?"

“What are you trying to say?”

“You got this, Yoon-Chan!”

"I... miss you... meow..."

The room fell silent. Was this his attempt at aegyo? Seeing it being delivered in such a tender whisper, we couldn't help but burst into laughter, completely charmed by his effort.

“Ahahaha!”

“Incredible aegyo!"

“Wow, what a great display of aegyo!"

“Yikes! Hyung, you nearly gave me a heart attack. That was no joke!"

“Okay, okay, that's enough..."

“Indeed, that was some amazing aegyo. Shall we move on to the next?" Joo-Han quickly wrapped it up and hurriedly drew the next number. “Who's number sixty-seven here?"

“That's me!" Fan number sixty-seven stood up, shyly covering her face with her hand. The microphone was then handed to her, and she said, “Um, well, it might not be possible, but I was wondering if you'd consider releasing a song as a sub-group."

“Oh, a song as a sub-group." It was a sincere request and question, so all of us automatically looked toward Joo-Han.

After a moment of thought, Joo-Han took the microphone to answer it. “We haven't planned anything like that so far, but we will consider giving it a try."

“Yaaaaay!!!"

“Hold on, we will obviously need to discuss it with the company first, but if we were to release a unit song, which combination would you prefer?" Joo-Han asked.

All the fans shouted out their preferred unit combinations. Of course, with everyone talking at once, it was hard to hear them.

Joo-Han listened to the fans and then took the microphone again. “What combination would you like, fan number sixty-seven?"

“I'd like... um, a roommate unit, maybe."

Goh Yoo-Joon started laughing and joked, “If it's a roommate unit, our leader will feel left out."

“Oh, no, that's not what I meant..."

“Hey, are you teasing the Rings too?"

“It's just a sign of closeness, antisocial Suh Hyun-Woo."

As Goh Yoo-Joon and I bickered, Joo-Han thoughtfully said, “We will take it into consideration. Thank you for your suggestion."

After that, we concluded the session with various promises: Jin-Sung's acapella dance—which I ended up joining, group promise for the Q&A app, Goh Yoo-Joon and my cover songs, selfie update promise, and so on.

Following a photo session in various playful poses and a brief talk about our schedule, we ended our first fan-signing event with words of thanks. Not long after it ended, reviews and accounts of the event started popping up on various social media platforms.

The posts detailed the conversations we had while signing autographs, the minor incidents that occurred, and what happened during the photo and talk session.

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