Second Try Idol

It had been a long time since I felt this thrilled just by the stage setup alone. The stage was vast and imposing, stirring a mixture of awe and anticipation in all of us.

Boom. Boom.

The night wind was cold, and my breath hitched with each loud beat of the drum. It wasn't nervousness, but excitement. The stage was so well made that it was impossible not to feel exhilarated.

With numerous dancers and a resonating floor, it felt like we were moments away from charging into the palace for a rebellion. In this setting, I performed a brief solo dance. I maintained my form but added more power than usual by pausing with each drumbeat to emphasize my posture. Then the spotlight above me abruptly went out.

Jin-Sung positioned a bit away from me and took over with his solo dance. He moved to the center and performed a longer solo. I quietly moved behind Yoon-Chan, waiting for the intro of "Red Rouge" to start.

The intro was powerful and jazzy with a Western flair, and was now adorned with traditional Korean instruments. It felt slower and heavier. The dark background added to the gloomy, eerie atmosphere. The arrangement was entirely different from the aggressive and powerful original "Red Rouge."

Soon, the song began.

***

"Good job, everyone!"

"We’re heading to the next location!"

It was fun.

The crew hurriedly packed up and prepared to move. The members and I were lying on the stage, staring at the sky until Tae-Seong called us down. The atmosphere created by the stage made us so immersed that our expressions and emotions flowed naturally.

'This is why we perform.'

With a faint pop, the lights went out. I took a deep breath and got up. Tae-Seong offered a rough hand to me and the other to Jin-Sung.

"We need to move to the next location quickly."

"Oh, okay....Whoa!"

As soon as I grabbed Tae-Seong's hand, I was practically lifted to my feet. His strength was as incredible as ever. Jin-Sung immediately jumped onto his back with Tae-Seong's help as well.

"I’m running out of energy~"

"Come on, don't lie. I’m older than you, but I’m still good."

"Out of energy~"

Despite my words, Jin-Sung clung to Tae-Seong's back and refused to let go. Among us, Jin-Sung was the biggest member, yet he acted like a baby.

Tae-Seong didn't mind and carried Jin-Sung on his back while helping the rest of us up and moving to the next location. We didn't go far. It was just to another spot in the same theme park. The stage for "Ario 愛" was a pavilion floating on a pond.

If "Red Rouge" had a dark atmosphere with red cloths, "Ario 愛" was blindingly bright with lights shining from all directions. As it became darker at night, the lights became even more pronounced.

Looking at the setup, it was clear they planned filming specifically at night, but the schedule starting in broad daylight suggested they always intended for a long interview.

"If we stand there, we won't see anything," Goh Yoo-Joon said as he approached.

The lights were shining toward the pavilion from all directions. Of course, they would adjust the positions before the rehearsal, but it seemed like it would be hard for us to see the cameras or crew while dancing and singing.

‘But aren't our costumes an even bigger concern?’

"Visibility isn't the problem," I said.

Goh Yoo-Joon tilted his head. "Then what is?"

"Isn't it more worrying that we will look like floating heads?"

Stew Rion’s team had specifically requested a concept of flowing white costumes. Consequently, all the members were dressed in white. Even with the night sky, the blindingly bright lights and our white outfits made me worry that only the exposed areas of our skin would be emphasized.

"Suh Hyun-Woo, you worry about the smallest things."

"What?"

Goh Yoo-Joon pointed with his thumb at Stew Rion, who was talking to Tae-Seong in the distance. "That guy's been in the industry longer than us. If he specifically requested it, he must have something in mind~"

"That's right." Yoon-Chan joined us. "Whenever Stew Rion makes a direct request, it always turns into a legendary performance."

"Oh yeah, fans in the comments often say that," Goh Yoo-Joon recalled.

"Really? Stew Rion's requested stages become legendary?"

Yoon-Chan nodded. "Apparently, most of them do. Stew Rion's stages always do well, but the ones he specifically plans often hit over ten million views."

"...Ten million?"

For a moment, I thought I misheard them. Of course, popular idols' music videos got hundreds of millions of views, but Stew Rion's channel was a personal one. Then again, considering the level of investment and effort put into it, it might be meaningless to count views with Stew Rion's scale.

"I watch these videos on his channel a lot, and honestly, you don't need to worry about how the video will turn out," Yoon-Chan reassured us.

Yeah, they probably knew way better than I did how it would look on screen.

"Rehearsal starts now! Chronos, please take your positions on stage!"

As we moved to our designated spots, Stew Rion spoke with the production crew, then removed two lights from the front before starting the rehearsal and main recording.

This time, just like how "Red Rouge" had been completely rearranged, "Ario 愛" also had some changes. The song itself remained the same, but the intro was different. The arrangement made "Red Rouge" and "Ario 愛" blend seamlessly, sounding like one continuous piece.

The intro began, and the camera panned to capture the moon in the sky before descending. Then, "Ario 愛" started.

***

"Great job, everyone!"

With the recording of "Ario 愛" complete, the glaring lights finally dimmed. We finally relaxed after maintaining our poses for the camera.

"Thank you all. That was fantastic!"

Stew Rion clapped enthusiastically with his team, and approached us with a big smile and a thumbs-up.

"Chronos! You did such an awesome job, just as I expected! Thank you for your great performance. The video is going to turn out amazing."

"Oh no, it’s because the stage was incredible," Joo-Han replied modestly by bowing politely to Stew Rion’s level.

"Thank you for your meticulous attention to detail."

"It's only natural to give my best for Chronos! The uploaded video will be spectacular. Look forward to it. I will let Tae-Seong know when it’s up."

"Thank you so much!"

Stew Rion cheerfully waved us off and left with his crew. We were promptly led by Tae-Seong to the van heading back to our dorm.

Jin-Sung practically collapsed into his seat. "Wow, I’m going to sleep like a baby tonight."

"Right? It feels like we've been shooting a music video for two days."

"Even though we did a lot in one day, wasn’t it fun? Right, hyung?"

"Yeah," I nodded to Jin-Sung, feeling both exhilarated and exhausted. The interview was long, and the performance recordings took a considerable amount of time. It felt like we spent around eight hours just on Stew Rion's channel.

Despite the fatigue, it was incredibly fun, just as Jin-Sung said. When else would we get to perform on such a grand stage? It felt like being part of a movie scene.

Jin-Sung perhaps thought our conversation was over, so he leaned forward to chat with Goh Yoo-Joon. Meanwhile, I fished around for my phone, which I had carelessly tossed aside earlier.

"Oh, right."

I had been checking fan reactions on BlueBird before the recording. The screen showed a post about Chronos' segment on Pick We Up Two.

- Ah, I finally saw it… I haven’t seen the stage yet, but I watched the part with our boys. And surprisingly, Hyun-Woo was good at teaching the juniors aw

- Right? I was shocked since the members always joke about him not being persuasive.

- 😭 Our boys are seniors now. I’m so proud, but can’t believe time went by so fast!

- Watching them teach the juniors made me realize they’ve grown up. It was really touching… 🥹

- Senior Hyun-Woo is no joke.

(Hyun-Woo explaining while the Sequence members take notes.gif)

- He claims to be bad with words but teaches really well, haha.

- Sequence members are clearly fans of Chronos lol

(A nervous, excited Aeon and Hyo-Joon from Sequence, with Hyun-Woo explaining something.gif)

I had worried about coming off as arrogant since the end of filming, but the fan reactions were positive. As for the fans of Sequence, I didn't feel the need to check their reactions. When I scrolled further, I saw comments about the other members.

- I was surprised to see Yoo-Joon teaching vocal theory so well.

- Agreed. I thought he was just naturally talented, but he taught the Sequence kids so well according to theory. You are such an amazing man, Yoo-Joon ❤️

- He must have worked so hard. The amount of effort you have put in was worth it, Yoo-Joon! I am tearing up 🥺

- Yoon-Chan being shy around the juniors is so cute, aww

- How can Yoon-Chan be awkward with the kids, lol

- I love how Joo-Han listens calmly and responds thoughtfully when talking to the younger members ❤️

- Jin-Sung's genius dance explanations, understood only by another dance genius lol

- ?? They say geniuses can't teach...

(Jin-Sung practicing dance with On-Sae.jpg)

I was curious about how the other members had done, and it seemed like everyone had their moments and taught well.

"We’re here. Good job, everyone."

As I turned off my phone, the van came to a stop. Joo-Han and I woke up the dozing members to head into the dorm.

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