Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols

“Thank you for your concern, PD-nim.”

 

I expressed my gratitude to Yoo Hansoo as if I were truly touched.

 

“But I don’t think you need to worry too much.”

 

─ Oh, how can I not? I’ve known you for so long.

 

Oh really, now.

 

Feeling smug, are we? Enjoying yourself?

 

“No, really, it’s okay. The company said they might be able to track the IP address of the internal accusations. Apparently, there are records kept from when the network was installed.”

 

How do you like that? Huh? You little XX.

 

Sure enough, not a word could be heard from the other end of the phone.

 

This b*tch, I suspected it, but he really posted those bad things about me at the company.

 

The call disconnected. Yoo Hansoo was probably scrambling to his office to confirm whether what I said was true.

 

‘He’ll probably call me again soon to say that spreading false information is a serious crime.’

 

The slight satisfaction of rattling him was short-lived, as I heaved a sigh.

 

I felt drained just from the phone call, so I crouched down on the stairwell landing for a moment and took a deep breath.

 

At least the company issues seemed manageable to clear up, but as for my family…

 

If anyone dug up their personal details, they’d likely distance themselves from me immediately, denying any ties. Those people would rather draw a line immediately, declaring they had cut ties with me long ago, than be associated with me.

 

The remaining issue was the school situation.

 

To be honest, I had no confidence in this area. Even if I claimed innocence, there was no one to back me up.

 

I should’ve tried harder to maintain good relationships. I shouldn’t have gone through life thinking I could do it all alone.

 

But then again, isn’t it self-serving to think of people as tools to use for convenience?

 

As expected, a bastard like me should live alone. Still, I should have maintained better relationships with my classmates…

 

“I’ve lived my life wrong.”

 

I hadn’t thought I lived it particularly well before, but today solidified it.

 

My life was garbage. Hopeless garbage.

 

“Still, to make it at least recyclable, I have to work hard…”

 

I dragged my feet. It was time to strive for a life that could be sorted for recycling.

 

* * *

 

Even after returning to the practice room, I couldn’t practice for long.

 

With so many controversies erupting at once, there was a mountain of information to sort through. As a result, for the first time since the nosebleed incident, I left early.

 

When I got back to the dorm, there was a fresh set of grade reports issued by the system in my suitcase. I fiddled absentmindedly with the edge of one of the college entrance exam result sheets.

 

I also transferred the screenshot I had taken of my university acceptance that got revoked, just in case, to my laptop.

 

What was the format for the Hanpyeong Industry written apology again?

 

I’d only ever received written apologies, never written one, so my memory was hazy.

 

First, I needed to apologize to the fans for causing concern. Then, I had to apologize for the delay in releasing a statement due to the time it took to organize everything…

 

I hurriedly drafted a statement and reread it several times.

 

A few rounds of vicarious fangirling for Spark were enough to teach me what to say and what not to say in an official statement. Thanks to that, editing was easy.

 

The final draft turned out neat and well-organized. Even if someone demanded witnesses, I was ready to provide them.

 

Except for the parts about school life.

 

There was nothing I could do about that. It was true that I hadn’t received any special treatment, but it was hard to prove that I missed group activities because of financial reasons. And though I hadn’t specifically disrespected anyone, I wasn’t exactly known for having good relationships with my classmates either.

 

‘This is why it’s terrifying when someone who knows just one piece of the story gets involved.’

 

I pondered for a long time about how to overcome this difficult situation.

 

In the end, I didn’t come up with any solutions and slumped forward onto the dining table.

 

It was a phone call that changed the tide.

 

“Manager?”

 

The caller ID showed it was the manager.

 

Wondering if something else had blown up without my knowledge, I wedged the phone between my shoulder and ear and turned my laptop back on from sleep mode.

 

Fortunately, the online forums were still stuck on ‘Kim Iwol’s Crappy Personality Exposed by Classmate’.

 

However, the voice on the other end belonged to an unexpected person.

 

─ Hyung, it’s Seongbin.

 

“Seongbin? What’s wrong?”

 

Looking at the clock, it was still the middle of practice time.

 

Jeong Seongbin calling in the middle of practice? This had to be something big.

 

I racked my brain, trying to figure out where my carefully constructed defenses had sprung another leak.

 

Then, I gave up.

 

What difference did it make where the controversy was brewing now? At least I knew I’d lived honestly, so I could refute whatever came up.

 

I calmly waited for Jeong Seongbin to speak.

 

─ Hyung, have you seen the post online?

 

“Online? You mean the ‘Collection of Kim Iwol Quotes That Reveal His True Character’ one?”

 

─ No, not that one!  

 

It was the hottest topic right now though. It had tons of comments, too.

 

As I rubbed my strained eyes and refreshed the page, Jeong Seongbin spoke again.

 

─ Someone claiming to be hyung’s classmate posted something!

 

He wasn’t kidding.

 

Before my eyes was a post titled: ‘I’m Iwol’s classmate. Regarding the misunderstandings about Iwol…’

 

* * *

 

The title of the post was long. It said the post was written to clear up misunderstandings about me.

 

I hung up, telling Seongbin I’d call back after reading the post. Then I scrolled down and read the lengthy post, which had the scroll bar as long as my fingernail.

 

≫ I’m Iwol’s classmate. I’m writing this post to clear up the misunderstandings about him. (Proof included)

 

Hello. I was the class president in Kim Iwol’s class during our third year of high school.

 

I heard that Iwol is facing a lot of misunderstandings, so I decided to write this post to share my honest perspective based on what I know of him.

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

‘Class president?’

 

I remembered him. He was a sociable and lively guy, so we exchanged greetings occasionally.

 

He loved soccer so much that he played every lunch break and would always call me over if they were short of players.

 

≫ Based on what I observed in our class, Iwol is not the type to disrespect his peers.

 

On the contrary, he was popular because he was good at sports, and he was an ordinary guy who enjoyed playing soccer with us every lunch break

 

When I injured my ankle and had to wear a cast, he carried my bag to the bus stop after school every day

 

Ah, right, this guy once severely sprained his ankle while playing soccer.

 

Back when I convinced Kang Kiyeon, who stubbornly refused to go to the hospital despite the pain in his ankle, the memory of this guy’s face was vague. But now, it was slowly becoming clearer.

 

≫ The claim that he received special treatment isn’t true either

 

Iwol consistently earned high grades. Everyone in our class knew his academic performance was among the best. At the time, no students complained that Iwol was receiving preferential treatment

 

The post went on for a while. Surely, some of the comments below would ask for a summary in three lines or dismiss it as too long to read.

 

But for some reason, I couldn’t just skim over it. Every word seemed to sink into my mind.

 

≫ Iwol was always a diligent fellow, and I believe he still is

 

Please continue to support him, as he’s someone who works very hard

 

Attached were images of our yearbook, group photos, screenshots of texts between the class president and me, and a chatroom capture of former classmates reminiscing: ‘Do you guys remember Kim Han?’

 

My phone vibrated again. It was a text from Jeong Seongbin.

 

He told me to call him after I’d finished reading the post.

 

I should call him.

 

I should, but…

 

When I closed the community tab, the SNS page I’d left open earlier popped up. My name, which I had searched to check fans’ concerns, reappeared, updated with new posts.

 

≫ Kim Iwol don’t be discouraged

 

No matter what anyone says you’re doing XX great

 

≫ Ah XX our kid wasn’t a pretentious showoff after all

 

Leave Iwol alone please

 

≫ Sparklers know best how hard Iwol works

 

I hope he doesn’t blame himself

 

That did something to me—something inexplicably poignant. For a moment, my mind went blank.

 

How could I repay all this gratitude? It felt like I had a debt the size of 30,000 truckloads to repay.

 

I immediately called the manager’s phone. Jeong Seongbin answered right away.

 

“Why did you answer so fast? What about your practice?”

 

─ Is practice important right now?!

 

“Of course it is. I’m already annoyed that I’m missing it, and you guys are just sitting around monitoring instead of practicing?”

 

─ Ah, whatever. Can we fix all this?!

 

I heard Lee Cheonghyeon shouting in the background.

 

“Yes. Let’s wrap this up neatly and end it today.”

 

* * *

 

“Man, this is the first time I’ve gotten this much attention online.”

 

“Enjoying it, huh? You feel good?”

 

Baek Haewon glared at her older brother, Baek Haein, who was glued to his phone.

 

Still, she had to admit that thanks to him, the negative public opinion surrounding Kim Iwol significantly subsided.

 

‘Seriously, if they were this close, he should’ve said something earlier instead of just mentioning they were classmates…!’

 

She had scoffed when he mentioned they were in the same class and played soccer together, thinking he was exaggerating, but she never imagined he was close enough to have shared those kinds of episodes with Kim Iwol.

 

‘No wonder Mom kept talking about some tall, handsome friend when that idiot broke his leg.’

 

Even her mother probably wouldn’t have guessed that friend would become an idol in the future.  Baek Haewon regretted not tagging along in her mom’s car to Hoyeon High School back then.

 

“So? How’s the reaction?”

 

Baek Haein asked. His tone was cheeky, but he still seemed genuinely concerned.

 

Well, Baek Haein had been really surprised when Baek Haewon first told him the news.

 

‘Kim Han’s rude? Wow, so those ridiculous celebrity rumors are true after all.’

 

‘Sigh, our Iwol is so sensitive, too… these bastards….’

 

‘He’s not that sensitive, though.’

 

‘Shut up.’

 

Despite grumbling, Baek Haein poured effort into drafting the clarification post. Beside him, Baek Haewon filtered out any sentences that shouldn’t be included.

 

‘Focus on proving that Iwol didn’t receive any special treatment. You’re the only one who can back that up.’

 

‘But all our classmates know he’s good at studying. The original post either must be written by someone outside our year or a made-up story.’

 

‘Isn’t that XXX?’

 

Those attention-seekers should all be hung upside down from the ceiling. Baek Haewon felt her blood boil with anger.

 

“Oh, by the way, that came up in the group chat earlier.”

 

“What?”

 

“You know, about how good he was at studying.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“They brought up something we talked about before, like why he suddenly switched paths to become an idol… that kind of thing?”

 

Come to think of it, he did say Iwol had been at the top of his class. When she first heard it, she had only focused on ‘Our Iwol didn’t receive special treatment!’ but thinking about it now, it really was a big deal.

 

“He was that good at studying?”

 

“He was! His school grades weren’t quite that high, but he always got first place on mock exams. That’s why he got access to the self-study room.”

 

Baek Haein casually dropped this bombshell as if it were nothing, then suddenly erupted, shouting, ‘Hey, who’s this idiot commenting on my post saying, ‘Stop blindly defending him’? Can’t I report them?!’