novellhall Chapter 3, Stepping into a Battlefield
Chapter 3, Stepping into a Battlefield
Yeouido, KBS New Building.
In the backstage waiting room of "Music Bank", Girls' Generation was as noisy as ever.
"Ugh, Sunny, when are we going to eat? I'm starving!"
Choi Soo-young let out a wail, threw the half-finished movie player onto the dressing table, and collapsed onto the sofa.
On the other side, in a single sofa, Lee Soon-kyu curled up in a small ball, holding an NDS handheld console, completely immersed in the game.
She didn't even bother to lift her eyelids, her tone extremely perfunctory: "Why the rush? Didn't I just call? They're already in the lobby."
"Ah...now that you mention it, I'm hungry too."
Tiffany, who had just touched up her lipstick in front of the mirror, rubbed her stomach, turned her chair around, and hugged Kim Tae-yeon from behind, who was browsing the internet on her laptop, like a koala.
"Taegu, you didn't eat anything this morning, aren't you hungry?"
Taeyeon was knocked forward by her weight, her voice weak and listless: "I was really hungry at first, but now that hunger has subsided, I don't feel anything anymore... By the way, where did Manager Oppa go? Why is Sunny feeding us now?"
"Oppa went to go over the process with the production team."
A muffled sound came from the center of the waiting room.
Kwon Yuri is stuck on the ground in an extremely bizarre and difficult backbend position, her head hanging upside down and her long hair scattered all over the ground.
She took a breath and continued, "Besides, Sun-kyu was bragging this morning that an acquaintance was coming to visit the set at noon and conveniently took care of our lunch."
"What do you mean 'conveniently'? They made a special trip for that!"
As the game ended with a sound effect, Lee Soon-kyu closed his handheld console with satisfaction and casually retorted.
As soon as she looked up, she was met with Kwon Yuri's upside-down face, grinning foolishly at her, and she immediately shuddered in fright.
"Hey! Kwon Yuri, are you trying to get yourself killed?!"
Lee Soon-kyu grabbed a cushion and threw it at him, saying, "Can't you practice yoga in a corner? It's scary to look at someone upside down!"
"Hehe..." Kwon Yuri used her waist to shift her position and avoid the pillow, then turned her head towards Kim Hyoyeon, who was tidying her clothes next to her.
Kim Hyoyeon rolled her eyes and raised her leg as if to kick: "If you keep looking at me like that, believe me, I'll kick you out!"
"Knock knock knock..."
A knock sounded on the door, accompanied by a male voice:
"Hello, your takeout has arrived."
"I'll do it!"
Upon hearing the word "takeout," Tiffany immediately straightened up from behind Taeyeon and rushed towards the door.
As she opened the door, Pani habitually flashed a smile: "Hello, thank you for your hard work. Just give me the things..."
She stopped mid-sentence.
The young man standing outside the door wore a black baseball cap that covered his messy hair, a white T-shirt, and black pants.
Despite her very ordinary attire, the contours of her face were exceptionally striking, making her stand out even in a TV station corridor filled with celebrities.
"Wow, so handsome!"
Pani gasped inwardly.
She subconsciously withdrew her hand, which had been reaching out to take the takeout, and instinctively brushed a stray hair behind her ear.
"What are you spacing out for?"
Lee Soon-kyu, who had also walked to the door, patted her shoulder speechlessly.
Pani then snapped out of her daze, smiled somewhat embarrassedly, and quickly took the packing bag.
Looking past the infatuated girl in front of him, Lee Ji-haeng turned to the short figure behind him: "Sun-kyu, long time no see."
"Zhi Xing Oppa!"
Lee Soon-kyu's eyes lit up, and he shoved Tiffany, who was still secretly looking at him, into the waiting room, then slammed the door shut.
In the waiting room.
When Choi Soo-young saw the food, her eyes lit up instantly. She immediately cleared away all the clutter on the table and urged Tiffany to put the takeout down.
As Tiffany took out lunchboxes, she whispered to her teammates beside her, "Daebak... Sunkyu's friend is so handsome."
Kwon Yuri finished her yoga poses and leaned closer to ask, "Are you a celebrity?"
"It doesn't look like it; I've never seen it before."
Tiffany shook her head. "Maybe he's a trainee from some company who hasn't debuted yet? Where did Sunny meet her friend?"
Kim Hyoyeon broke apart the disposable wooden chopsticks, raising an eyebrow: "Could it be... her secret boyfriend?"
Pani blinked. "Wow, I'm really going to be jealous of her."
Then, while unpacking the takeout box, she looked around and called out, "Taegu, stop looking at the computer and come eat! Where's Jessica? Hmm... Jessica's asleep again. Where did Yoona and Seohyun go?"
Taeyeon sat at the small round table and swiped the mouse: "You guys eat first, I'll check if there are any new movies coming out recently."
Sooyoung had already mixed the jajangmyeon (black bean noodles), took a big slurp, and mumbled, "I'd better eat a few more bites before Yoona comes back, otherwise she'll try to steal my sweet and sour pork again!"
After taking only two bites, Xiuying suddenly stopped, muttering in confusion, "Huh? This taste... isn't it just like the Chinese restaurant we always order from?"
Meanwhile, in the corridor outside the waiting room.
Lee Soon-kyu looked Lee Ji-hyung up and down: "Oppa, what have you been up to lately? I haven't seen you for months. The last few times I've ordered food, it's been delivered by that really fierce uncle at your restaurant."
"What do you mean 'older man'? Ming-ge is only a year older than me!"
Li Zhixing first defended Li Ming, then said, "I've been doing part-time jobs all this time. I just finished a project and only returned to Seoul the day before yesterday."
Lee Soon-kyu sighed with some regret, "I've been advising Oppa to come to our company as a trainee for a long time. With your face, you'd definitely have no problem debuting. You might even become the visual of the next boy group."
Li Zhixing shook his head: "Forget it, it's not like I haven't been a trainee before, I'm really not interested."
Knowing his personality, Lee Soon-kyu didn't press the matter further and changed the subject: "Oppa, do you still have to rush to deliver orders later?"
"Not for now, why?"
"Would you like to come in and sit for a while?" Lee Soon-kyu winked. "How about I introduce you to your idol?"
Li Zhixing glanced at the closed door, hesitating slightly: "Won't this... be too inconvenient?"
"How could that be!" Lee Soon-kyu waved her hand. "The official rehearsal and performance are this afternoon. Everyone's free right now. Come on, come in with me."
"Oh well."
Li Zhixing raised an eyebrow and a smile appeared on his lips. "Then let's give the idol a chance to meet his fans."
Lee Soon-kyu rolled her eyes at him speechlessly, then pushed the door open:
"Kids! Let me introduce you to a new friend!"
Lee Soon-kyu stepped aside, revealing Lee Ji-hyung behind him.
In an instant, everyone in the waiting room except Jessica, who was fast asleep on the sofa with her head covered, turned their gaze to the door.
The room fell silent for a second.
Facing the collective gaze of the popular girl group, Li Zhixing showed no embarrassment, bowed slightly, and smiled: "Hello, I am Li Zhixing, a friend of Sun-kyu."
Although Pani had given them a heads-up, the people in the waiting room were still taken aback when they saw Li Zhixing's face.
Tiffany took in her sisters' reactions, a smirk playing on her lips. She thought to herself, 'See? I told you he was super handsome, right!'
Hyoyeon, biting her chopsticks, tentatively asked, "Sunkyu, be honest, this isn't really your boyfriend, is he?"
Lee Soon-kyu rolled her eyes at her: "Hey! Don't talk nonsense! Ji-hsing oppa is a friend I met at the Chinese restaurant, he is..."
At this point, Lee Soon-kyu hesitated, unsure how to describe Lee Ji-haeng's profession.
Li Zhixing, however, didn't seem to mind and smiled as he continued, "Yes, I'm a deliveryman for a Chinese restaurant."
"Cough cough..."
Choi Soo-young nearly choked on her jajangmyeon (black bean noodles), her face filled with disbelief. "Really? Are delivery drivers this good-looking now? Are they some hidden celebrities?"
At that moment, Kwon Yuri, standing next to Tiffany, subconsciously straightened her back.
From the moment the man entered, her gaze remained fixed on his face, her eyes filled with a hint of inquiry, and her brows furrowed slightly.
Finally, she couldn't help but lean forward slightly, staring into Li Zhixing's eyes, her tone tinged with uncertainty:
"Um...excuse me, have we met somewhere before?"
......