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Chapter 166: Joy (3)

“Mmm, yeah."

“What if someone ends up hurt? Do you have any idea how much effort we\'ve put into this, eh eh?"

“Yeah."

“Shut up! You know nothing! You are clueless about the pressure we are under! You should have warned or told us earlier, eh?”

“Yea...”

Su-Hwan was well aware of the permission he had granted for Goh Yoo-Joon and Suh Hyun-Woo to indulge in a celebratory drink for their coming of age. He had thought that everything would go neatly with leader Joo-Han present. However, this was beyond his expectations as Joo-Han appeared to be the most intoxicated of them all.

“You are out of the loop. Hey! You\'ve been bottling up concerns lately, haven\'t you, eh? Speak up. Why won\'t you?"

Bang!

Joo-Han slammed his hand on the table, frustration all over his face. “Why keep silent when you know there\'s something bothering you? You stubborn dude!"

Goh Yoo-Joon was nestled against Suh Hyun-Woo\'s shoulder and appeared to be asleep while Joo-Han was relentless in his nagging.

“You are getting too scared... You think I wouldn\'t notice..." Joo-Han grumbled.

However, Suh Hyun-Woo remained stoic with an unchanging expression until... “Mhm... I\'m sorry." His voice sounded distant as if he was half out of this world.

“Who\'s asking for apologies here!? Blast it! It\'s courage you need, not apologies!"

Deciding that the muddled conversation was none of his concern, Su-Hwan started to walk away, only to lock eyes with Joo-Han. Joo-Han’s face was filled with irritation as he beckoned Su-Hwan over with a weary gesture.

“Manager hyung, come over here. Ah, this is driving me up the wall!"

“...Are you about to lecture me now?"

“Didn\'t I always tell you to be more open and speak freely around me?"

“You did. Now, let\'s get you off to bed," answered Lee Su-Hwan, swiftly managing Joo-Han\'s complaints and steering him toward his room. As soon as Joo-Han stood upright, he slumped forward, his consciousness flickering away.

After throwing Joo-Han onto his bed, Su-Hwan returned to the living room and saw the aftermath of the evening\'s escapades. The sound of a soju bottle rolling across the floor punctuated the silence.

“Ugh..." One bottle lay empty, its contents long gone, and another bottle was almost empty. These two bottles were the culprits of tonight\'s chaos.

‘All this from just two bottles?\'

It was hard to believe that Joo-Han had been reduced to this state by merely two bottles along with the inexperienced drinkers, Goh Yoo-Joon and Suh Hyun-Woo.

Su-Hwan picked up the fallen bottle with a wry chuckle and then attempted to rouse Goh Yoo-Joon, who leaned at Suh Hyun-Woo. “Yoo-Joon, time to head to your room and sleep."

Despite his efforts, Goh Yoo-Joon showed no signs of waking up. Su-Hwan then sighed heavily and mustered all his strength to hoist the considerably larger Goh Yoo-Joon onto the bed.

Next was Suh Hyun-Woo\'s turn. Breathless from the effort of moving the other two, Su-Hwan called out to Hyun-Woo. “Ugh, Hyun-Woo..."

Suh Hyun-Woo then turned a vacant gaze toward Su-Hwan and murmured, “...Yes."

A flicker of relief crossed Su-Hwan\'s face as he thought at least Suh Hyun-Woo would manage to walk to his room on his own. But then...

Thud!

Suh Hyun-Woo\'s head hit the table with a soft thump.

“Oh, for heaven\'s sake..." Su-Hwan sighed again and pulled out his phone for a brief rest. His screen displayed a picture from Goh Yoo-Joon and Suh Hyun-Woo\'s adult celebration, which offered him a moment of peace amidst the chaos.

He then tucked his phone away and approached Suh Hyun-Woo once more. “Hyun-Woo, ready for bed?"

“Mmm... I don’t know.”

“...Huh?" Su-Hwan paused as he was taken aback by the casual response. Suh Hyun-Woo then continued to rub his forehead against the table.

“I am sorry. I didn\'t mean to..." Suh Hyun-Woo\'s voice trailed off, laden with melancholy that seemed out of place at the moment.

“Why the apology?" Su-Hwan was concerned and confused, recognizing the familiar ramblings of drunk people. Much like what Su-Hwan had done earlier with Joo-Han, he brushed off the apology with a light-hearted response, intending to help Suh Hyun-Woo back on his feet.

“It\'s just... I\'m scared, hyung," Suh Hyun-Woo confessed, his voice barely above a whisper.

Scared? Su-Hwan\'s attempt to lift Suh Hyun-Woo halted as he pondered the weight of that single word. Was Suh Hyun-Woo referring to himself or expressing concern for Joo-Han?

“Scared of what exactly? Hyun-Woo, could you try lifting your head a bit? It\'s quite a challenge to help you up like this."

“If I go back... the plane..."

Su-Hwan paused once more as Hyun-Woo\'s fragmented sentences painted a picture of apprehension.

“Back? The plane?"

“Fear... of the plane."

The pieces slowly started to fit together. Returning, the plane, the fear... Although Su-Hwan wanted to dismiss it as mere drunken babble, Suh Hyun-Woo\'s words seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

“Are you saying you are afraid of the plane flying back?"

Su-Hwan suddenly recalled Suh Hyun-Woo mentioning his acute fear of heights, so it appeared that he had misinterpreted Suh Hyun-Woo\'s apology.

***

As the night wore on, creeping into the early hours past 2 AM, our rehearsal stretched on until every member felt satisfied with the performance.

This new track was deceptively upbeat to the audience and was laden with complex and challenging choreography. For example, there was a move where Goh Yoo-Joon had to carry another member on his back, and another part where Joo-Han and I had to use our arms as a chariot to carry Jin-Sung forward. These elements were all part of the playful yet demanding nature of this song.

True to Chronos\'s reputation, the choreography escalated and pushed our limits further. Yet, thanks to our recovery from injuries and experience from all the live performances, we gradually found ways to execute the moves without risking ourselves.

The manager glanced at the clock and exchanged a look with Joo-Han, who acknowledged the late hour with a nod.

“Given that Hyun-Woo and Yoo-Joon have a shoot tomorrow, perhaps it\'s best to call it a night."

“Yes!" The chorus of our voices marked the end of the night\'s practice.

Indeed, Yoo-Joon and I were scheduled for our first shoot for Graduating: Boys’ High School Edition the next morning.

“Wow, how much sleep can we manage? Maybe four hours?" The scarcity of sleep during our downtime seemed almost comical, though unavoidable with our impending comeback.

“Whew... I\'m back."

Entering the tidier-than-usual dorm, I noticed the cameras left by the Graduating team strategically placed around.

“Hey, it\'s now 2:30 AM, and we just got back from practice."

Jin-Sung sounded weary in front of the camera and caught my eye as I made a beeline for the bathroom to freshen up. Then, I instantly collapsed into bed, eager to catch whatever sleep I could.

It was the next morning.

Jarrrrrrr!!!

The ring of the alarm clock had me grimacing as I clumsily switched it off, only to drift back into a light doze. Soon enough, Goh Yoo-Joon\'s grumbling as he checked the time brought me back to reality.

“Hey, wake up..." His heavy morning voice nudged me awake as his foot pressed insistently against my body.

I burrowed into the corner of the bed to dodge his feet and protested, “...Aren\'t the others still getting ready?"

The distant sound of the shower suggested someone else was already up, likely one of the youngest gearing up for a real school day.

Q: How did you manage to stay awake in class?

A: By waking up just in the nick of time, more so than anyone else.

I was always the last to shower and get ready, long after all the trainees had finished their morning routines.

“You really haven\'t changed, have you?” Goh Yoo-Joon\'s voice carried a hint of exasperation as he glanced at the closed door. He then headed out and promised to wake me once everyone was done.

Later, I was roused by Goh Yoo-Joon, who was done taking a shower. I then went into the living room to see Jin-Sung drying his hair and Yoon-Chan watching TV, already in his school uniform.

“Hyung, did you sleep well?”

“Oh, you\'ve changed into your uniform?"

“Hyung, you just woke up?"

The scene of members getting ready for school was a familiar yet refreshing sight, reminding me of our trainee days when we\'d prepare for school in turns.

“Haha."

It almost felt like we had stepped back into our high school days.

“Better hurry up and wash up. Don\'t want to be late on the first day."

“What about Joo-Han hyung?"

“He\'s been working since dawn and is now asleep," Yoon-Chan informed me. Joo-Han must have been up all night, selecting parts for the fan club inauguration setlist.

I quickly showered and changed into the uniform provided by the production team. The school uniform was a standard charcoal color, which was chosen to give us all an authentic school experience.

I skipped breakfast as always. After that, we decided to head to school in the manager\'s car to avoid causing any inconvenience to the public. After all, several cameras had been installed in the manager’s car as well. We climbed in and started chatting naturally, acting oblivious to the cameras.

“Wearing this uniform feels so strange."

“I find it weird seeing you wear a uniform properly for once."

“Back in school, I only wore the tie and jacket to school and took them off as soon as I got to the classroom."

“Right, you did that. Do they have a discipline committee here too?"

Since Yoo-Joon and I had mentioned that we went to school together, this conversation would probably be explained in the subtitles.

“I\'m really curious about who we will be teamed up with."

“Ah, I\'m a bit nervous."

“Hey, what\'s there to be nervous about? We are all in the same boat." We continued our conversation, each of us glancing out of the windows on either side of the car.

Soon, the school building that we had to attend came into view. It seemed quiet and peaceful.

“Should we get off here?" When Goh Yoo-Joon asked this, the manager, who had been silent for the sake of the broadcast, quietly nodded. I then opened the car door and stepped out to take in the sight of the school gate, the playground, and the building. A banner hung at the entrance, placed there by the Graduating team.

[Welcome to the first class of Memory High School!]

“Memory High, huh, Goh Yoo-Joon?"

“We are the first class of Memory High? Awesome..."

As we admired the banner, the waiting production team approached us with cameras in hand.

- Hello, Yoo-Joon and Hyun-Woo students.

“Ah! Yes, hello!"

‘Student...’

The title wrapped us in an unfamiliar sensation as the production team handed us a piece of paper.

- Welcome to the first class of Memory High School.

“Thank you, we are looking forward to it."

We greeted the production team and took the paper they offered.

- We hope you will create unforgettable memories from your school days here. In that spirit, please answer the question we\'ve just given you and submit it.

I looked down at the paper and saw a simple question.

[If you were to go back to school, what is something you\'d definitely want to try?]