The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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27

“Hello, I’m Kim Hee-young, the PD taking charge of the Shining Star project.”

Kim Hee-young had a distinctive way of speaking—drawing out the ends of words with a gentle lilt. Despite being in her early thirties, her youthful appearance could easily pass for a college student.
With such characteristics, anyone meeting Kim Hee-young for the first time would inevitably think the same thing.
Ah, this person should be easy to handle.

“Hello! We’re The Dun.”
“You came an hour early?”
“Ah, yes!”
“I told you to arrive on time since the previous schedule is tight.”

And that impression crumbles spectacularly within five minutes.

“Do you have any foreign members? Can’t they understand Korean?”
“PD! The camera is rolling here.”
“We’re going to edit it anyway, so what’s there to worry about?”
“PD!”

‘Still the same….’

As everyone fell silent, the Assistant Director cautiously gauged the mood. The Manager then flinched in alarm and waved his hands frantically. After all, the person in charge now wasn’t some obscure idol group—it was a successful PD.

“We apologize; it seems there was a miscommunication on our end.”
“I’d appreciate it if you could arrive on time next time.”

Since when did people get scolded for arriving early instead of late?
Everyone wore that exact expression, but it was clear Kim Hee-young had stayed up all night and was simply irritable. More than that, she was acting as if she had a problem with the program itself.
Summoned from the Rest Room, Kim Hee-young continued yawning repeatedly while fluttering through the proposal document.

“Well, since we’re here, let’s give it a shot…. So you said Dae Pa-sung Planning’s The Dun, right? There’s some buzz around you.”
“Yes, the members of The Dun are really hardworking.”
“Hard work actually makes things worse.”

Kim Hee-young exhaled deeply. The members’ faces hardened as they grasped the implication.

“Starting from the left: Sung Ji-won, Kim Sung-hyun….”

Still intent on doing her job, Kim Hee-young recited slowly. Suddenly finding myself last, I tried my best to maintain composure.

“…and Seo Ho-yoon.”
“….”
“Hmm….”

Kim Hee-young tilted her head, staring at me far longer than the others.

‘What’s going on?’

Cold sweat began trickling down my back.
Could she have recognized me?
No, that’s impossible.
Lim Hyun-sung, Joo Woo-sung—they’d all forgotten about me. This wasn’t the world where PD Seo existed; this was where obscure idol Seo Ho-yoon lived.
Sure enough, Kim Hee-young nodded.

“Seo Ho-yoon… you’re really handsome.”
“…Thank you.”
“You’ll photograph well on camera. You’ve got real presence….”

Damn it.
I muttered quietly to myself.
The members kept glancing over with expressions that screamed ‘Hyung, what’s wrong?’ and ‘Your expression’s been off since earlier.’ I must have looked pretty strange.

The moment Kim Hee-young’s gaze shifted, Kim Sung-hyun beside me nudged my ribs, signaling me to get it together.
That was the message.
I want to get it together. I really do. But how can I when my ex-girlfriend, Kim Hee-young, is staring right through me from a few feet away?

“Anyway… to cut to the chase. I’m sure you’ve all seen the concept.”
“Yes, it was really fun!”
“We enjoyed it.”
“Yeah, glad The Dun members liked it. Honestly, I fucking hate it.”
“PD Kim!”

The Assistant Director beside her jumped in alarm, grabbing her arm to stop her.

“PD, have you lost your mind? Why are you like this, seriously? What do you think these fresh rookies will think of you after hearing that kind of talk?”
“Ah… I don’t want to be like this either.”
“Then why are you!”
“What can I do when I don’t like it? Those lunatics up there keep meddling, saying do this, do that, constantly interfering. Do they think people are disposable? Damn it….”

Kim Hee-young continued muttering like a madwoman.
Everyone’s faces except Kim Hee-young and mine shifted through colors like a laser light show—flushing red, draining pale, changing moment by moment.

‘Ugh… I really didn’t want to say anything.’

Only I could stop Kim Hee-young from spiraling here. I finally exhaled a shallow sigh and carefully opened my mouth.

“Um, PD.”
“…Yes, Seo Ho-yoon.”
“You said you’d give us a summary of today’s first recording and explain the mission.”
“That’s right.”
“Could we hear about that first? We didn’t come here to listen to this kind of talk from you.”

At my words, the members’ faces, already trembling from the PD’s remarks, turned even more ashen. The Manager’s eyes flashed—not impressed by the PD at all, he seemed to question why I was causing trouble, wondering if Seo Ho-yoon had finally gone insane. He looked ready to box my ears if I said one more word.
But Kim Hee-young blinked slowly, then nodded her head gradually.

“You’re right about that. I’m sorry. I haven’t been in my right mind lately.”

Only then did everyone exhale the breath they’d been holding frozen, their faces visibly relaxing.
Kim Hee-young was called the madwoman of this Cable Broadcast Station district, but she’d managed to climb this far because she was reasonably rational.
She slowly distributed the planning documents.

“The production crew has been cycled through quite a bit on this project, so the recording schedule is a bit tight. First recording starts in three days, but I’d appreciate it if you could prepare. We’re planning to shoot 120-second debut stages then.”
“In three days?”
“Yes. Ah, could you bring out that lottery draw?”

The Dun members’ faces clouded slightly.
A lottery draw that had been contacted to Today a month ago—one that was clearly just for show.
Kim Hee-young took the two lottery draws the Assistant Director handed over, one in each hand, her expression hardening before she quickly feigned indifference.

“Alright, someone draw one.”
“Ah, I’ll do it.”

Naturally, Kim Sung-hyun, our leader, stepped forward to draw.

“There are five girl groups in the K-pop industry. I wanted to go with something distinctive, so I made the list with girl groups instead of boy groups. Each of you will compete with the songs you’ve selected.”
“What songs are available?”
“White Cherry, Like Girls, Merimi, Rosemary, Itchu. Check the songs yourselves.”

They were all formidable girl groups. At those words, the members exchanged meaningful smiles.
Kim Hee-young, who had been observing them discreetly, held out the slip of paper on the right.

“And this one has the concept written on it—a fairy tale concept. Since fairy tales are the motif, you’ll be drawing one from several options. Ready?”
“Yes!”

At Kim Hee-young’s gesture, the camera moved in closer. Kim Sung-hyun, tense, drew the song and concept in sequence.
Everyone fell silent watching him.

“….”

[Like Girls – Want You]

The one,
the one I’d thought would be the most difficult.
Jung Da-jun started clapping first.

“Wow… wow… wow.”
“This… is… truly… an… honor.”
“What?”

Kim Hee-young laughed, watching our deflated expressions.

“These guys are cute.”

This will edit beautifully, Kim Hee-young murmured, her eyes crescent-shaped with amusement.

***

“Ho-yoon, wait a moment. I can’t figure out where everyone scattered off to.”
“Yes. I’ll stay here.”

Everyone seemed shocked by the draw, or maybe they’d all retreated into the van—in any case, they’d scattered in different directions.
After sending the Manager off, I wandered aimlessly around the Broadcasting Station. Walking without thinking, my feet naturally drifted toward the Smoking Area.

It’s been a while since I’ve been here. Every time I’d come to this place, I’d smoke a cigarette….
Back then, I’d run into Kim Hee-young here quite often.
…An uneasy feeling crept in, and I was about to turn back on my heel.

“…Oh.”

Kim Hee-young really is a tiger.
Right at that moment, I ran into Kim Hee-young. She was openly smoking in front of the Broadcasting Station, and she greeted me far more warmly than I expected.

“Aren’t you Seo Ho-yoon?”
“…Yes.”

What could I do? I couldn’t just ignore the main PD.
I approached Kim Hee-young like a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.

“Did you come to smoke?”
“No, I don’t smoke.”
“Really?”

Kim Hee-young looked just a touch—truly just a tiny bit—more vibrant outside than she had inside. Drawing in the nicotine seemed to make life feel a little more bearable for her.
My conscience pricked at me sharply.
Kim Hee-young used to be a light smoker… but for some reason, she’d become a heavy one.

Ding!

[Mom, mom!]

‘….’

[Popcorn unlocked!]

Be quiet.
I was thinking about what to say to naturally create distance between us when our eyes met directly with Kim Hee-young’s.
Exhaling a stream of cigarette smoke into the air, Kim Hee-young smiled at me with a slight smirk.

“You know, Seo Ho-yoon, no matter how many times I look at you, you’re really handsome…. How did I not notice before?”
“Thank you….”
“Of course, the other kids are handsome too, but, well, how do I put it… You have this captivating quality about you, Seo Ho-yoon. There’s something subtly sensitive about you that hits my sweet spot perfectly.”

You told that Strike Zone guy with your particular taste to get lost while cursing him out. I desperately stopped you from splashing water on him and slapping his face.

“Oh!”

Kim Hee-young waved her hand frantically, apparently interpreting my disgruntled expression in some way.

“I didn’t mean anything special by it. Sorry if I hurt your feelings. I’m tactless, aren’t I? Working as a PD, evaluating people becomes part of the job, and even I can see I’m being rude.”
“No, you’re not.”

I quickly denied it. After all the years we’d spent together, I could understand what she meant. I knew that her blunt and seemingly disrespectful words were actually her way of giving praise.

“The PD just said I’m handsome. How could that possibly hurt my feelings?”
“…Wow, you’ve got some smooth lines.”

When I smiled slightly, Kim Hee-young couldn’t take her eyes off that smile, then cleared her throat with a soft cough.

“Anyway, I think Seo Ho-yoon is fine. These days, idols are so afraid of being criticized that even when I say crude things, they don’t say anything and just tiptoe around me. In that respect, I liked how Seo Ho-yoon was straightforward earlier.”
“Maybe they’re not afraid of being criticized—maybe they’re just afraid of you, PD?”
“Ha ha, very funny. How kind am I?”

Now I understood how those kids felt when she appealed to them that she was kind.
Kim Hee-young giggled.

“Anyway, I’m sorry. I’m sorry too, and we haven’t been paying enough attention to The Dun members in this project. We told you about the mission late….”

When she said they told us late, she probably thought we didn’t know anything.
If Joo Woo-sung hadn’t told us, we would have thought all the other teams had started practicing three days earlier.
I slowly shook my head.

“No, it’s fine. It’s already enough.”
“No, you’re definitely going to be treated poorly.”

Kim Hee-young smiled bitterly, as if foreseeing what was to come. She looked exhausted.

“I’m sorry, really.”
“….”
“Life really isn’t easy.”

You can’t tell just by looking at someone.
Kim Hee-young was a successful PD. She’d reached a point where she could quit entertainment if she wanted, and people would beg her to keep going.
Talented, confident, overflowing with self-assurance.
I thought she lacked nothing, yet Kim Hee-young was exhausted.

What could I possibly say to her here?
I wasn’t the Seo Ho-yoon she knew.

“….”

I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it firmly without saying anything.
Kim Hee-young took one last deep drag from her cigarette, stubbed it out, and smiled slightly.

“Well, if I get another job, I’ll try to call you. I’m saying this because I like you, Seo Ho-yoon.”
“…PD.”
“Hmm?”

I pulled out the candy that Kang Yi-chae had stuffed into my pocket—candy he’d given me to help me quit smoking for good.
When I dropped a handful into Kim Hee-young’s palm, her eyes widened.

“…What is this?”
“Candy.”
“I can see that….”

Kim Hee-young looked at me as if wondering what kind of nonsense this was.

“In other words, it’s a bribe.”
“….”

She looked bewildered.
In the distance, I heard the Manager calling for me. I turned my head to look, then glanced back at Kim Hee-young.

We’d made a bet about quitting smoking back then.
Kim Hee-young had always been confident, boasting that she’d quit faster than a heavy smoker like me.
The old memory surfaced, and I smiled faintly.

While I was alone, ruminating on the memory, an ominous sound rang out.

Ding!

[Choice Options
-Pretty Ho-yoon will come again♡
-Think of me while eating candy♡
-I’ll be taking my leave now-.]

‘Damn it!’

He always showed up at precisely the worst moments.
I’d never made a decision so quickly in my entire life—I practically slammed my choice without hesitation.
Cold sweat trickled down my back.

“Then I’ll be taking my leave now!”
“…What?”
“Wishing you all the best.”

Kim Hee-young’s expression shifted from bewilderment to confusion, and now she was looking at me like I was completely insane. But I turned away and left that place behind. Staying any longer would only pile on more embarrassment.
She’d think I was a madman, but seeing her again after so long, I couldn’t help but let a smile bloom across my face.
You don’t need to apologize, Noona.
We’re going to take first place.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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