In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Chapter 91:

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 91

Lunch was catered.

They said it was the food from the commercial set. And they were right.

“Wow.”

Woojoo exclaimed as he saw the feast on the disposable plate.

Stir-fried pork, smoked duck, beef bulgogi.

He was worried about his face swelling, so he couldn’t have the crab soup, but this was the most delicious meal he had in a long time.

“Finish eating before you talk, Wang Jiho. You’re spitting rice everywhere.”

“I’m happy because of you.”

Woojoo laughed as he looked at Rihyuk, who was frowning.

Under the temporary tent set up in the playground, the staff were chatting and eating.

Bijoo smiled.

“The staff look much more relaxed now.”

“It’s because Woojoo Hyung and Jiho did well. They were all like this when we were filming.”

Junghyun imitated their expressions with his eyebrows in a V shape, making everyone burst into laughter.

“Wow, that’s so accurate.”

“Right?”

“You’re good. Junghyun, you should act too.”

“I can’t do that. It’s not my personality. I can’t even lie.”

Woojoo glanced at the youngest, Jiho, who was still clapping his hands for Junghyun.

He had been so proud of his acting since Woojoo praised him earlier. Woojoo thought he would still be saying, “Acting is not lying!” by now.

But he was distracted by something else.

“Jiho, what are you looking at?”

“…”

“Hey, Mr. Wang.”

Woojoo snapped his fingers, but he kept ignoring him.

Rihyuk looked at Woojoo and clapped his hands in front of Jiho’s eyes.

The youngest jumped like a cat.

“Ah, you scared me! What is it?”

“What are you staring at instead of eating, that old man over there?”

“Ah… I was looking over there.”

It was a table far away.

The director, the assistant director, the advertiser, the advertising agency staff, and Seokhwan Hyung were having a heated discussion.

“Do you think they’re changing the ad script?”

“Probably.”

“I hope it’s something more interesting.”

“I don’t care about the interest, as long as it’s not too hard.”

“Me too.”

“Well, anyway, we three don’t have much to do. It looks like they’re going to focus on the two of them.”

Rihyuk handed Woojoo a banana he had brought as a snack.

“I’ll work hard.”

“What? Why don’t you give me one?”

“Take one from another Hyung.”

Bijoo smiled and handed his banana to Jiho.

Seeing that, Junghyun, who had been hesitating for a while, split his banana in half and gave it to Woojoo and Jiho.

There was no King Solomon here.

“By the way, when is the Around the World With Dice team coming?”

“Uh, I’m nervous.”

“Me too, I’ve only seen them on TV… I wonder if they look the same in real life?”

Woojoo heard they would arrive around the end of lunchtime.

The recording time was about 30 minutes.

It was just a simple introduction video, but Woojoo felt nervous for some reason.

Not only him, but everyone looked anxious and tense.

When the shooting was over today, there would be an article.

Woojoo had seen the comments on the rumor that a rookie would appear on the Chuseok Special, and they were not very friendly.

He didn’t know what they would say when they found out they were fixed.

Woojoo hoped they could get some good scenes from today’s shooting.

As Woojoo was thinking that, he suddenly felt a presence and turned his head. There was a man holding a plate.

“…Who?”

He had a peculiar outfit.

A gray T-shirt and jeans, with a baseball cap and a mask on top.

He was slender but had a muscular body from working out.

Was he a staff member?

“Uh…”

He plopped down at their table.

His abrupt action made Jiho and Rihyuk move their chairs closer to him.

Woojoo also opened his lips with a wary look.

“Excuse me, but…”

But before he could finish his sentence, he pulled down his mask to his chin.

“Hi.”

“…”

“I had some time left, so I came to have lunch.”

“…”

“Oh, are you surprised because we’re meeting for the first time?”

Woojoo was so shocked that he opened his mouth wide.

Because the handsome man who was smiling cheerfully in front of them was someone they all knew, or rather, everyone in this place knew.

Ye Heechan.

He was a fixed member of Around the World With Dice, who would shoot with them today.

***

Woojoo tried to greet him hastily, but he waved his hand.

“Don’t make a fuss.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Just sit comfortably. Comfortably.”

Woojoo nodded stiffly.

He picked up a side dish with his chopsticks and looked at the five idols who were frozen like statues.

“Aren’t you going to eat?”

“Ah, we’ll eat.”

“Good, you all look young. You should eat a lot.”

He spoke casually and ate the side dish. Then he parted his lips with a face that couldn’t help but admire.

“The best thing about lunch is the ad rice. It was worth coming early.”

“…Did you come here for a meal?”

“Yeah, I was going to eat some tripe nearby, but I thought it would smell. I felt like it was lunchtime, so I came to get some food.”

He had a peaceful face.

“There was no other seat than your table.”

“Didn’t anyone recognize you?”

“Nah, they seemed to think I was a staff member. No one would have noticed.”

Seokhwan Hyung mouthed ‘Around the World With Dice?’ from afar, and Woojoo nodded.

“Well, it’s food and food. And I wanted to get to know you before the shooting.”

He pointed at them with his finger.

“By age, it’s Woojoo, Bijoo, Junghyun, Rihyuk, Jiho. Right?”

“That, sunbae-nim.”

“No?”

“I’m sorry, but you got them all wrong…”

He laughed heartily, as if he was embarrassed.

Woojoo was nervous.

His laughter made the staff at the other tables blink.

They seemed to recognize him.

“Sorry, sorry.”

Ye Heechan smiled.

“I’m not good at recognizing faces. When you said you were in order of age, I thought Junghyun was an alien. He looks like the oldest.”

“I am the oldest.”

“I heard you did your military service. Oh, this is an unexpected gap.”

“I look young in real life too.”

The younger ones laughed at Woojoo.

Rihyuk even drank water from a bottle as if he was thirsty.

Woojoo glared at them, and Ye Heechan smiled as he picked up some bulgogi.

“You guys seem to get along well as a group.”

“Yes, we’re close.”

“That’s good. Sometimes when idols come out, they fight with each other and make a mess. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about that.” Ye Heechan looked around at the younger ones and said, “By the way, I got the face wrong, but I still remember everything else. I even made a song for you. Look. Seon Woojoo, composer idol, Fireworks, Night Sea, twenty-two, veteran, leader of New Black…”

They laughed at the melody he made up to match the slogan “Dokdo is our land”.

He also laughed cheerfully.

“How is it? Did I get it right?”

He stopped joking and started to eat again. He looked like he could do a food commercial with how deliciously he ate.

Oh. He already did that.

He had done commercials for ramen, hamburgers, and anything related to food.

Ye Heechan.

He was the youngest member of the cast of ‘Around the World With Dice’, a large family of four men and three women.

He had a rather unusual career.

He became famous as a handsome academy teacher on a variety show, then debuted as an actor.

He had been playing minor roles for several years, until he got a chance to appear on a show called Around the World With Dice and became popular.

He had a laid-back and easygoing personality as his concept, and his catchphrase was also famous.

-Let’s live comfortably in this complicated world.

Woojoo thought it was just a broadcast concept, but it seemed to be his true personality.

Beep– Beep–

He glanced at his vibrating phone and pressed the reject button without hesitation.

“It’s one of our members who’s filming today.”

“Ah.”

It was so natural.

The phone rang again.

This time, it was a different name, so he answered.

“Hey, Hyung. Where are you? I’m at the set. Oh, okay. Come inside quickly.”

Did they all come?

Before Woojoo could ask, loud screams erupted from everywhere.

The staff and extras jumped up from the table.

“Who is it? Who’s here? Who came?”

“Around the World With Dice! Around the World With Dice is filming today?”

“Today’s filming was Around the World With Dice?”

“Oh, I saw it! I just saw it!”

“They look exactly like they do on TV.”

“Paper, paper, where’s the paper? I need to get an autograph.”

It was chaos.

They looked at New Black like pebbles on the street when they met them, but now they were running around with excited faces.

It looked like a fish market.

The VJ and the production team with cameras pushed through the crowd, and the only ones left in the middle of the crowd were a woman with a model-like pose and a big manager.

She smiled brightly and greeted the people who came to her.

“Hi, everyone.”

New Black stood awkwardly as they watched the senior entertainer greet them.

“…Should we go and say hello too?”

“Do you have the confidence to get through there? I don’t.”

“She’ll come to us, just sit down.”

Ye Heechan gestured for them to sit comfortably, but they waited in place.

Soon, the time of meeting.

While the managers and the production team exchanged greetings, the other members of Around the World With Dice reached them.

“Hello, we’re New Black!”

“Hi.”

She narrowed her eyes as she greeted them calmly.

She seemed to recognize the back of the person who turned away and sat down.

At that moment, Ye Heechan also turned his head.

“Are you here?”

His tone was completely different from when he talked to New Black.

With a displeased expression, Ye Heechan scanned his opponent from head to toe.

And the feeling was mutual.

“What is this?”

She retorted in a tone of disbelief.

“I tried calling you but you didn’t answer, and now I find you here enjoying a feast.”

“Come and eat. The food here is good.”

“I’m not eating with you.”

“Then don’t eat.”

They didn’t seem to get along well.

But New Black was only curious to watch.

They thought they only had bad chemistry on the show, but they were the same in real life.

“Ouch.”

Ye Heechan, who had been gently scratching his opponent, got up.

Then, a sound of ‘wow’ erupted from the onlookers who were watching from afar.

He, who seemed to enjoy their attention, glanced at the woman next to him. Did he hear someone say ‘pretty’?

He then narrowed his eyes.

“Hey, what’s with your face today…”

“What. Do you think something changed?”

“Why did you put so much effort into your face? Just because you’re filming with an idol… Ahh!”

“This is real.”

The people laughed as Ye Heechan got hit on the back.

It was the same scene they had seen on TV.

“Heechan Oppa.”

“You’re calling me oppa now.”

“Ahh! Guys, help me out.”

New Black also laughed as they watched.

Ye Heechan and Yeo Heeyeon.

They were the youngest line of Around the World With Dice, and siblings who were only a year apart.

***

“Did you guys prepare well?”

“Yes.”

“You have to do well.”

They had similar faces, but the siblings had different personalities.

If the brother was the type to do things casually and go with the flow, the sister was the type to be passionate and driven.

She showed off her skills in warming up her body, as expected from a former athlete.

Ye Heeyeon looked around them and asked, “Woojoo, Bijoo, Junghyun, Rihyuk, Jiyo. Right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Three of you are good at physical stuff. Bijoo is dance, Junghyun is sports, and Woojoo can do anything well?”

“Yes, Sunbae-nim.”

“You two are singing and acting.”

She had accurately grasped their personal details and moved her neck as she spoke.

“We’re going to do a mission at the end of the introduction video later. Something about getting a golden key. Right now, our team is at the bottom of the score. We have to do well on the recording today, at least for that.”

“Hey, Ye Heeyeon.” Ye Heechan interrupted, “Do you always grill the kids as soon as you meet them?”

“Of course. The situation is what it is. At this rate, we’ll end up eating only lettuce without pork belly for dinner on the first day of the special.”

“…Do we only eat lettuce?” Junghyun asked with a shocked face.

Ye Heeyeon, who was about to speak seriously, couldn’t help but laugh.

Then she explained the situation.

Every time they introduced a team member, they had to do a mission, and if they succeeded, they would get something called a ‘golden key’.

It would be an important clue for the Chuseok Special.

The siblings predicted that they would use it to decide the dinner menu or the sleeping space for that day.

Their kids were fired up by the mention of beef.

“Hyung, let’s work hard.”

“We have to eat meat.”

“Right. Like Woojoo Hyung said, what was it? We have to do it with the determination to break our spine.”

“You’ll die if you break your spine. Kids.”

The makeup artists who were fixing their makeup pursed their lips.

While checking if the microphone was fixed properly, the surroundings became noisy.

People were watching from the edge of the auditorium.

It looked like a movie theater.

It would be perfect if they handed out popcorn.

Most of them were staff, so there was no one taking pictures with their smartphones, but there were plenty of people who seemed to be using messengers.

As New Black stuck together and comforted each other, something rolled over with a clattering sound.

It was a basketball hoop for today’s mission.

***

In front of all the staff in the studio, Around the World With Dice’s youngest line, Ye Heechan and Ye Heeyeon, introduced New Black in a corner that ended smoothly.

Ye Heeyeon said in a lively voice, “Okay! Now we’re going to do one more mission and then part ways. How about it, New Black? Are you nervous?”

“Yes, my heart is pounding.”

“Taejun Hyung, you saw how nervous they are, right? Let’s go easy today, a little.”

“Really.” Ye Heeyeon continued, “If you tell me to dance with a pole installed on the street like I did without hesitation yesterday, I won’t stay still!”

“That was really hard, pole dancing.”

The siblings shuddered with the same expression and the people laughed.

“Don’t worry.”

The man who had the script under his arm, PD Oh Taejun, said with a smile, “To repay your support, we’ll go easy today.”

PD handed them a basketball.

“You know free throws in basketball, right?”

“Yes.”

“It’s simple. You put on headphones that play music, and you succeed in free throws. The method doesn’t matter. You can kick it with your feet, or throw it with your hands. As long as you use your body, anything goes.”

“Is that all?”

“But, there’s a different number of people who have to succeed at each distance. If the dice roll is 1, the distance is short, but all seven of you have to succeed. If it’s 6, it’s considered a success even if only one person comes out. But… the distance will be a bit long.”

The production team brought a box the size of a delivery box.

It was a dice with blue fur like a cushion.

It was an object that Woojoo had only seen on TV, and he looked at it with curiosity while they looked at them with serious faces.

“Hey, we have to roll this well.”

“Who was it? The one who’s good at sports. And basketball?”

“Yes, I’m good at it.”

“Then, do you want to roll it, Junghyun?”

“No, no!” the four said at the same time. They looked at New Black with puzzled faces.

“Why?”

“Because he’s a notorious jinx.”

“He’s the icon of misfortune.”

“It’s like a superstition among us… Whenever Junghyun says he has a good feeling or something, things go wrong.”

“…No, it’s not. That’s not it.”

Ye Heechan looked around them and asked, “Then, who’s the luckiest person here?”

At that, the younger ones all looked at Woojoo.

He was flustered.

His siblings handed him the dice with hopeful eyes.

“No, I’m also a symbol of bad luck…”

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

“Yeah! Just roll it without pressure. We won’t say anything if you roll wrong… Hey!”

The spectators burst into laughter with a loud scream.

Six white circles.

In an instant, they all glared at Woojoo as if he had committed a heinous crime, and he could only make a wronged expression.

Hey. You told me to roll it comfortably.

***

“I knew it. Junghyun Hyung cursed Woojoo Hyung in the car. He said he had a good feeling today.”

“Hey. Is Junghyun Hyung some kind of black magician?”

“But he has a point. Woojoo Hyung is usually very lucky.”

A brief practice time.

When Junghyun and Around the World With Dice’s the two members stood in the middle of the court, the members behind them whispered.

“Isn’t the distance too far?”

“This, I think they have to throw it like lifting a heavy stone.”

“But it still doesn’t seem to go in.”

It was almost the end of the court.

Only one person had to succeed, but Woojoo doubted it.

And there was a headphone with music.

“What is this? Why is the Heart Sutra playing?”

People laughed.

The members also laughed, but soon they hardened their faces when they saw Junghyun trying to make a shot and swaying awkwardly.

“Junghyun, what’s wrong?”

“I heard Fireworks and my body moved without me knowing…”

“Fireworks?”

The PD answered that.

“New Black said in the pre-survey that they practiced a lot. They said they could dance even if they only heard the song in their sleep. That’s what we prepared for the penalty. It seems to be very effective.”

“…”

“That, there’s no devil like that.”

The members who silently agreed with that shuddered with worry.

Jiho asked, “It looks too hard. Can you do it, Hyung?”

“It’s vague. How about you, Bijoo Hyung?”

“It doesn’t seem easy. The distance is far and there’s a penalty.”

When they were making worried expressions, Jiho turned his head to the one who had been silent until now.

“Hyung, how about you, possible?”

When he thought he would say he was also having a hard time.

“Just a moment.”

“Yes?”

Woojoo began to look around carefully.

He scanned the distance and position of the basketball hoop and the route like an athlete on the field. He also nodded his head back and forth with a very focused face.

Since it wouldn’t work anyway, it was a question to relax, but the reaction was serious.

‘Why is he doing that again?’

The members looked at each other with those eyes.

Woojoo answered calmly, “I think I can do it.”