Chapter 60: Chronos History (4)

“I will print it out now, so memorize it within ten minutes. You can do it, right? Even if it’s impossible, you have no choice. We are short on time.”

“We are so sorry.” Joo-Han had already apologized twice. The composer looked at us with a disappointed gaze and sighed heavily.

“This prank doesn’t feel right,” Lee Jin-Sung whispered.

“Yeah, I agree.” I felt the same way. Although it was to trick Joo-Han, his dejected look made me feel uncomfortable.

We barely had ten minutes to memorize the lyrics before the recording started. “The composer is so intimidating. What am I going to do?” Yoo-Joon whispered anxiously, as he was the one who had to rebel against the composer.

“You look quite threatening too, so you will be fine. Just think of it as you going crazy,” I reassured him.

“You have to help me out as soon as possible, okay?" Yoo-Joon’s words had me nodding in agreement. Despite his fierce appearance and rough speech, he was actually quite straightforward and amiable. It seemed that he was nervous about showing anger to an elder, even though he was just acting.

“Don't worry. If you get into trouble, I will jump in right away."

“Okay."

I extended my fist, and Yoo-Joon, cautiously eyeing Joo-Han, bumped his fist against mine. We all rallied our spirits as we watched Park Yoon-Chan enter the recording booth. “Just don’t swear when you fight," I reminded him.

“Of course."

The composer didn’t seem to have any intention of getting angry at anyone other than Yoo-Joon. He advised, “Hmm, try to relax a bit more when singing this part. Remove the emotion to let the atmosphere come through. Shall we try again?"

“Yes!" There was no point in causing trouble with the composer since we had agreed to work together. Besides, he was famous for not giving out his songs that easily. Instead of getting angry, the composer gently corrected Yoon-Chan and Jin-Sung, and then wrapped things up. If it weren't for the hidden camera prank, it would have been a very harmonious session.

"Suh Hyun-Woo, you need to give me the cue to get angry when I go in." While Joo-Han was recording, Yoo-Joon quietly asked for help. He appeared anxious and continued to seek guidance repeatedly.

I nodded firmly, keeping my eyes forward. “When you make eye contact with me, then start acting annoyed, okay?"

“Okay."

“Next, Yoo-Joon."

After Park Yoon-Chan, Jin-Sung, and Joo-Han had finished, Yoo-Joon finally entered the recording booth. I then nervously watched Yoo-Joon, biting my lip.

“Hyun-Woo, you look upset. Are you okay?" Joo-Han quickly asked, noticing my distress.

“No? I mean, I'm fine." I shook my head, but my face remained tense with anxiety. Joo-Han then sat down next to me, looking concerned. As the other members were aimlessly flipping through the lyric sheets, I just pressed my quivering cheek down onto the sheet.

“Are you nervous? Want me to get you some warm water?"

“No, I'm fine, hyung."

“I thought you never got nervous on stage."

‘It’s definitely not stage fright. I am anxious because we are deceiving you, hyung.’

Seeing my pale face, Joo-Han got up to get water, but I quickly grabbed his arm and made him sit down again. “I'm okay. I will probably feel better once I go into the studio."

It didn't matter if I had to make excuses to Joo-Han, but under no circumstances could I let him leave the studio. If he did, he wouldn’t see Yoo-Joon acting angry.

“Again."

“...Okay."

Yoo-Joon was struggling right from the start. The composer's continuous criticisms seemed to wound his pride, even though the former was just acting. Yoo-Joon, who had always been confident in his vocals, was receiving a lot of criticism in front of his friends and group members, and it probably wasn’t pleasant for him.

“It sounds really blocked here. Again."

“Okay.” Yoo-Joon sang his part again, but the composer just shook his head, not satisfied.

“Goodness, why isn't this working? Again."

“...Okay.” Goh Yoo-Joon’s expression grew increasingly stern. After that, the song was stopped again before one part could even be completed.

“The manager said Yoo-Joon sings well, but umm...”

“Uh...”

‘

Isn’t that a bit harsh?’

I grimaced unconsciously and glanced at Yoo-Joon. Now, he wasn’t just acting but was genuinely frustrated. His brooding look alone already created a tense atmosphere.

I saw an opportunity and chimed in. “What’s with him? His face...” Before I could say more, Joo-Han cut me off by placing his hand on my lips.

“Shh, keep quiet. Do not say anything about that. It will make things worse.”

"Okay," I answered. Joo-Han had sensed the seriousness of the situation before I tried to escalate it, so I obediently shut up.

Meanwhile, the composer was persistently calling for 'again.' Yoo-Joon occasionally shot him a glare, and the other members started glancing around nervously, especially at Joo-Han. Then...

Bang!

The composer suddenly slammed his hand on the table. He shouted, “This isn’t working! No progress at all. Why are you even in the debut group? Maybe you should just quit."

We were all startled and looked at the composer, our expressions turning grave.

“Ah, seriously..." Yoo-Joon started rolling his tongue in his mouth, his face flushed with anger. “What am I supposed to do? This is ridiculous..." he muttered under his breath, causing the composer’s eyes to flash with anger.

“Hey, are you crazy?" At that moment, I wondered if this was still an act. Yoo-Joon’s pride seemed genuinely hurt, so I stood up.

“Hyun-Woo?" Joo-Han looked stunned. With a serious expression, I pressed the microphone button that connected to the recording booth. “Hey, what are you doing? Yoo-Joon, come out for a second." It was a sudden and impolite action that I would never normally do.

Joo-Han quickly grabbed my arm. “Suh Hyun-Woo!"

“Hyun-Woo hyung!"

“Just give me a moment. I need to talk to him."

I brushed off the other members’ attempts to stop me and just glared at Yoo-Joon. He hesitated for a moment before stepping out of the booth with an equally hostile face. Yoo-Joon was completely immersed in his role as a troublemaker, with hands shoved in his pockets. “Why did you call me?"

“What are you trying to do?"

“What do you mean?"

“Why are you getting annoyed during the recording?"

‘Wow, look at those eyes.’

He looked like he would slap me any second.

Jin-Sung stepped between us. “Hyungs, why are you doing this? Ah, don’t..."

“Why are you acting up now, of all times? What's this behavior in the recording booth?"

“So, if you were me, you wouldn’t get annoyed? He keeps nitpicking and making me sing over and over."

The composer played along, sighing heavily as if in frustration. I then pushed Jin-Sung aside and continued, “It's because you can't do it properly. Can't you read the room? You think you're the only one struggling?"

“How can you say that to me when you know I hate being told I can't sing?"

‘Ah, damn.’

Our eyes met squarely, and my cheeks twitched.

Struggling to suppress a grin, Yoo-Joon grabbed my collar. “Hey, come out here."

‘Well done, Yoo-Joon.’

Just as I was about to dash off to get the cake, Jin-Sung yelled, “Stop it!"

“...”

“Why are you leaving? Why are you fighting here?"

‘No, just let us go.’

I was trying to leave before we burst out laughing.

My eyes locked with Yoo-Joon’s again, and we quickly looked away, lowering our heads.

‘Don't laugh. Calm down, Suh Hyun-Woo.’

Jin-Sung’s interference left a brief silence in the studio, and that was when Joo-Han stood up.

“Stop it! Sir, I'm sorry." Joo-Han bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle to the composer in apology.

“I've worked with many artists, but I've never seen anything like this."

“We're sorry."

“You guys are just rookies who haven't even debuted..." The composer clicked his tongue and turned his head away. Joo-Han looked at us, his face a picture of utter disappointment. He scolded us, “Enough! There are so many people here!"

I protested, "Hyung! But when will this end at this pace?" Just then, the composer’s phone vibrated. After he checked it, he stood up abruptly and shouted, “Then don't record anymore! I can't stand this!" He then left the studio. It seemed that he had received a mission from the director.

The door slammed shut loudly, and we were left alone in the studio. Joo-Han then glared at me and Yoo-Joon with a furious expression. “What are you guys doing?"

‘What should I say? What can I say?’

Facing Joo-Han's genuine anger, Yoo-Joon and I could only exchange nervous glances.

Finally, I broke the silence. “Yoo-Joon keeps getting annoyed."

“And what about you? Aren’t you annoyed as well?"

“Well, yes I am." We really shouldn’t be acting like this, even in jest. Since becoming trainees, we’d been through a lot, but this was the first time we'd been scolded by Joo-Han to this extent. The atmosphere was so tensely charged that it was almost unbearable. Now, Jin-Sung simply stood behind Joo-Han, not knowing what to do.

Then Park Yoon-chan burst out, “If this is how it's going to be, just quit!"

“What?" Everyone, including Joo-Han, turned to look at him.

‘Oh my, is he... ‘

“Hey, are you crying?" Yoo-Joon asked in shock. Park Yoon-Chan was sobbing, tears streaming down his face.

‘

Isn’t he aware this is not real... Wait a minute.’

“If we fight like this even before we debut,

sniff,

the cameras... the composer... we're already,

sob

, disliked by people in the industry. How can this group survive?"

‘Is he acting right now?’

Park Yoon-Chan wasn’t crying out of overwhelming emotions but was fully committed to the hidden camera prank.

Park Yoon-Chan, sobbing, glanced at Yoo-Joon and me. It was a clear signal for us to leave.

“That's it! Quit, Yoo-Joon. Before you ruin Chronos’s image by fighting with the composer. I don't want to be in a group with him!" I shouted. In response to my words, Jin-Sung grabbed and shook me. “Why are you and Yoon-Chan hyung acting like this?"

‘This idiot muscle dude!’

He was shaking me so hard that my shoulders hurt. Just then, Yoo-Joon timed it perfectly, knocking Jin-Sung's arm away from me. “Fine, I quit! I must be so talentless if I have to repeat the recording so many times. I can’t do this. I’m quitting the show too." Yoo-Joon stormed out of the studio, leaving a somber atmosphere behind.

Seeing this scene, Joo-Han ran his fingers through his hair and slumped onto the couch. “Ah, it's over for us. Really... Suh Hyun-Woo."

“Yes?"

“Go out now. Go make up with Yoo-Joon."

“But, hyung!"

“Are you serious? You want to waste ten years of training because of this petty fight and not debut?" His sharp words propelled me toward the studio door. “I'll be back!"

‘Gosh, that was scary.’

I was technically older if we had to count my mental age, but why was he so intimidating? It felt like disaster would strike if I didn’t leave.