Chapter 33: One more time, Ok?! (3)

“Lucas? We’re done with the wardrobe preparation so he said he was going to step out for a bit to get some coffee.”

Ahn Hyung Seo replied, puzzled.

Do Wook looked around. Oh Baek Ho was in one corner giving pre-shoot precautions to the other members. When Do Wook called out to him, Oh Baek Ho, who had been talking, looked at Do Wook.

“For now Hyung Seo, you can’t go out wearing that outfit so….Give me a sec.”

“These clothes?”

Ahn Hyung Seo, who didn’t understand what Do Wook was saying, looked down at his own clothes.

Ahn Hyung Seo’s bright yellow t-shirt was a shirt with colorful graphics on it. Following hip-hop street fashion, various geometric patterns were printed on it with various symbols chaotically placed above it.

“What’s going on?”

At Do Wook’s beckoning, Oh Baek Ho came to Ahn Hyung Seo and Do Wook’s side and asked with a serious expression. Because Do Wook’s expression was serious, Oh Baek Ho’s expression became even more serious.

“Baek Ho hyung, I think it’ll be difficult…To do the broadcast wearing these clothes.”

What Do Wook was pointing at was one of the symbols printed on the t-shirt.

It had a red circle in the middle with several straight lines branching out in several places. You couldn’t tell at first glance, but if you look closely, you could see that the shape looked like the Japanese War Criminal Flag.

Furthermore, there were several similar patterns on the shirt sleeves. It was to the point that it would be hard to innocently say it’s just a pattern. It was also in an area that would be hard for the person wearing the shirt to notice.

‘There’s numerous celebrities whose image had been tarnished because stuff like this was missed. It’s not to the point of committing a crime, but there are lots of restrictions on future activities if you’re branded as an out of touch celebrity.’

Do Wook thought as he looked at Oh Baek Ho, who was inspecting the t-shirt.

It wasn’t just a shirt with a cuss word on it; it was the Japanese War Criminal Flag. It was something even Do Wook would have a hard time forgiving if someone wore it purposely.

‘On top of that, this is a Nation Entertainment Show. You definitely get branded with the image you have on here. It could be worse than not being on the show at all.’

The reason Do Wook was even able to discover such a small shape was because there was an incident in the past where a celebrity who wore this brand’s clothes became a pariah over the ‘Japanese Flag Controversy’.

‘A celebrity from Q Entertainment Agency also wore it before. I had a difficult time writing apology articles when I worked in the PR department.’

They were problems that occurred since they wore a lot of clothes that were imported from a brand designed by a foreign designer.

“My goodness, is this…”

“Yes. It’s similar to the Japanese War Criminal Flag.”

“Gasp! We almost had a serious issue!”

Ahn Hyung Seo could have unfairly received a serious mob beating.

Oh Baek Ho quickly took his phone out from his pocket, found Lucas’s number in his contacts, and started to call him.

Ahn Hyung Seo looked again at the shirt he was wearing, surprised by the words “Japanese War Criminal Flag”. He asked, on the verge of tears,

“This is that one Japanese thing, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Eww, I hate it so much! Now that I know I feel uncomfortable, I can’t wear it. Maybe I should change back into the clothes I was wearing earlier.”

After saying that, Ahn Hyung Seo really headed back to change out of the clothes.

There was one hour until the recording started. Since they were going to shoot in the waiting room, the Limitless Challenge staff had arrived at the waiting room and were in the middle of setting up the filming equipment.

Lucas, who received Oh Baek Ho’s call, returned soon.

Lucas had a small frame and was dressed in all black. He was wearing a large black fedora and a black cloak.

Pale-skinned but walking around dressed like a flashy crow, he got a lot of stares from people who brushed past him, as if they had seen a ghost.

“There’s a problem with the clothes…?”

Lucas had gone to school in Norway, a region north of Europe, since he was five and studied fashion design in New York as an adult.

He also stumbled a lot when speaking Korean because he never spoke Korean except when speaking with his parents or seldom with his Korean friends that he met in New York. Oh Baek Ho hardened his expression at Lucas’s hesitant question.

“Here, this shirt has a shape that should never be used.”

Oh Baek Ho clearly pointed out the Japanese War Criminal Flag shape, but Lucas had a confused expression.

“This is, how do you say it…!”

Oh Baek Ho, who thought he would obviously understand right away, felt dizzy for a moment. Do Wook, who was standing next to him, explained.

“It’s like a Nazi logo. A logo you should never use in Korea; a logo with serious problems.”

“Nazi…?!”

At the mention of Nazi, Lucas repeated it, shocked. It was an expression different from the dazed expression he had moments earlier. He started to understand the seriousness of the situation.

In the West, it was often used in Japanese animation or in designs by Japanese brands so it was normal to simply think of it as a sensual pattern. Because of that, Lucas didn’t think much of it either.

In the meantime, Oh Baek Ho called Kim Won and had him explain the situation to Lucas in English.

Kim Won, who typically only uses English in a playful exclamation, explained why the shape was a problem in a serious manner with fluent English.

Kim Won also studied abroad, but he received extensive history lessons from his parents. He himself also had a tendency to explore various fields of knowledge so he read a lot about World History and cultures as well and understood it.

Kim Won, who was slightly flustered, spoke quickly to the point that Oh Baek Ho and the other members who were standing next to them barely understood the word ‘War Criminal’ only.

“I’m so embarrassed. I’m sorry.”

Lucas, who heard Kim Won’s explanation, muttered gloomily.

“It could have been a big problem if Do Wook didn’t notice it, but since we found it ahead of time, it’s ok. Do you have a different outfit?”

“Yes there is. Do Wook…Thank you.”

Do Wook nodded his head to Lucas.

“I’ll give you different clothes, Hyung Seo…”

Ahn Hyung Seo followed Lucas to go change out of his outfit.

The outfit he changed into was a typical pink t-shirt with a picture of a cute dog’s face.

“This is better. It worked out.”

Oh Baek Ho said. Ahn Hyung Seo, the other members, and Lucas as well let out a sigh of relief.

This was the Entertainment World where you never know when something would go wrong.

‘It’ll probably get worse the closer we get to the top.’

The thought that he should stay alert and be cautious at any moment crossed his mind once again.

***

The lights that were set up in the waiting room were turned on, and the Limitless Challenge shoot featuring KK started with a dozen or so staff spectating.

Since the Limitless Challenge members’ ‘You’ drew in so much attention in the last broadcast, this shoot involved finding KK in the waiting room, who were the originals, and doing a short interview on how they felt about it.

The Limitless Challenge members, who came looking for the KK members, created a lively atmosphere first by praising KK, saying they’re cool, they’re definitely rising rookies, etc. Afterwards, following Na Jae Suk’s lead, the members took turns saying their name and explaining the role they took on.

Kim Won stood out by saying he’s a fan of Limitless Challenge and talking about Limitless Challenge episodes one after another.

Afterwards, Nae Jae Suk asked the leader, Jung Yoon Ki.

“Ok, so then what did the KK members think of our performance?!”

“I’m sure they enjoyed it~! We killed it~!”

Before Jung Yoon Ki even responded, Ha Myung Hoon interjected and bragged, causing people to laugh.

“Yes, we enjoyed it. It was so impressive that I wondered if I performed like that…I felt a slight sense of shame…”

At Jung Yoon Ki’s response, the Limitless Challenge members asked back if he was purposely making a sour face and saying he felt shameful.

“By the way, Leader Jung Yoon Ki, I see you have an accent.”

“Yes. I haven’t been able to completely fix it yet.”

“I see. Then could we have you say hi to the viewers in that accent?”

The shoot was progressing without any problems since they prepared the interview content beforehand.

At that moment, Ha Myung Hoon suddenly started heading towards Do Wook out of nowhere.

“What is it? Myung Hoon!”

“OMG, Can I try this on? It’s so cool. It’s been catching my eye for a while.”

The outfit Ha Myung Hoon, who was very interested in fashion, was talking about was the denim jacket Do Wook was wearing. Ha Myung Hoon had his gaze fixed on Do Wook since KK’s entrance and introduction. A good looking guy with a fashionable style; it was totally his ideal.

Na Jae Suk and the other Limitless Challenge members scolded him that it was an imposition, but his will was strong.

“Here you go.”

With a polite tone, Do Wook gave him the denim jacket he was wearing. The Limitless Challenge members admired the firm upper body that was revealed when he removed his jacket.

While they were doing that, Ha Myung Hoon was whining that he wanted to try on the denim jacket even though it was clearly too small for him since he gained a lot of weight recently.

Riiiiip―

The shoulder and arm area of the denim jacket tore as it made a riiiip sound.

Everyone on set stopped moving out of bewilderment, as if the pause button had been pressed. It was a real situation that was unplanned. Ha Myung Hoon’s face turned bright red. At the same time, the others burst into laughter.

“Oh, why is the jacket like this?!”

Ha Myung Hoon yelled, unable to hide his embarrassment. Na Jae Suk stepped up and apologized on his behalf.

“Oh no, what should we do? I’m…I’m sorry.”

“Ah…Oh no. Don’t worry. It’s ok. Really.”

Do Wook repeated in a gentle tone that it was ok. He also took the denim jacket and hung it on his arm so Ha Myung Hoon wouldn’t be further embarrassed. Na Jae Suk and the other Limitless Challenge members lavished Do Wook with praise, saying his personality was as beautiful as his face.

“Definitely a manly man~! They exist~!”

“The company paid for the jacket anyway. It’s not my jacket.”

“Ah…! That’s why you were saying it’s ok~!”

Na Jae Suk’s expression brightened over how sensibly Do Wook handled the situation.

There was an accident they didn’t foresee, but the shoot ended in a fun atmosphere. After the shoot ended, Ha Myung Hoo and the Limitless Challenge’s Jae Jak Jin promised to reimburse them as they apologized about the jacket.

***

After the Limitless Challenge broadcast was aired, Do Wook’s popularity rose among not only teenagers, but also females in their 20’s.

Since it’s a program that lots of men watch as well, there were lots of responses like, ‘That guy Do Wook is good looking even from a guy’s perspective’ even among guys.

The other members also demonstrated their individual charm a little so their popularity rose.

During that time, ‘You’, which became popular through word of mouth, was maintaining first place on the music chart and, riding on the coattail of that success, ‘Sorry but I Love You’’s ranking also rose to second and third place. On the third, and last, week of activities, KK was nominated for first place on Life Song for ‘You’.

Inside the car heading to the Life Song event.

Do Wook was wearing his headphones and was listening to the first draft of his latest project that he was currently working on with Brave Only Child. At the same time, he was searching Entertainment articles on his phone out of habit.

An article about M2M was up on the main page.

< M2M Comeback Imminent! Seo Jun, Confident About Rivalry with KK… >

Do Wook’s eyes shone sharply.

‘M2M’s first full length album is coming out…! Seo Kang Jun, are you confident…?’