There's always room for another

Chapter 15: 3.2 - The meeting

3.2

To say the mood was sour was an... understatement. Do Hoon was pacing the room, while the rest of the girls watched on. Wheein looked visibly upset, Hyejin was scowling, and Jiyoon? Jiyoon just looked more resigned than Yongsun had ever seen her.

(Even more than at the end of that first ever rehearsal she had with them.)

"How did it get to this? I didn't think it would..."

"With all due respect, sir." Hyejin sighed, crossing her legs under her. "I think they just never got a chance to get to know Jiyoon." She sounded tired - but then again, so were the rest of them. This was one of their rare gaps of time between promo schedules, and Yongsun was craving her bed something fierce.

The situation hadn't escalated since that night two weeks ago. In fact, it seemed to have just settled into this weird new status quo with the antis on one side, and their real fans on the other. Both camps were on very different ends of the spectrum - one thought that Mamamoo wasn't really Mamamoo without their original rapper; and the other didn't mind that Jiyoon was there. In fact, the latter celebrated the new things that Jiyoon had brought to the group, which the members were all grateful for. The new song had garnered one win so far, which was unlike their previous long streaks, but more than they had wished for with this comeback.

"I know. I know, and that was my fault." Do Hoon rubbed his face as he finally, finally stood still. "We should have done more. We could have done so much more."

Wheein glanced at Jiyoon, who was listlessly picking at a nail. "To be fair, fan reactions are the one thing we never have control over." Yongsun knew she was trying to cheer him up, but she still had to hold back a snort. Hyejin was right, and they all knew it. As she had said in the car before - they'd fucked up, and now they needed to fix it.

"Let's focus on what we can do now." Yongsun had spent a lot of time thinking about it. "We can't just continue like nothing had happened. Maybe VLives, some MamamooTV with more Jiyoon screentime. Or get us on Idol Room . She has to earn their trust."

"What if we did a part swap in the next performance? Let Jiyoon take over lead rap and more vocal parts?" Hyejin suggested. "Most of the antis seem to believe she has no talent - we know otherwise." Jiyoon had flinched at the comment - and everyone noticed. "We can't just keep selling the idea that she's a part of this group because the company put her there - she has to prove it to everyone else too. Especially considering our branding."

(BeLisMamoo.)

(It used to be a source of pride for everyone. Not pain.)

"Yeah, and put her on King of Masked Singer . That'll gain a lot of trust." Yongsun stared at Do Hoon, who was just staring blankly at them. "Do Hoon-nim? Are you okay?"

"Yes." He shook his head distractedly. "Yes, of course. Those are all good suggestions. Let's keep them coming." He reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. "I have to take this call, I'm sorry."

"Okay, it's not just me, right? Do Hoon's been off the ball lately?" Wheein stared at the door that had closed behind him with a frown. "Usually he's all over us during comebacks."

"Something's off." Yongsun couldn't ignore it any longer. "I'm going to go talk to him." As the leader, she would have to be the one. Wheein gave her a thumbs up, while Hyejin just nodded. Yongsun would have stepped out immediately if she hadn't noticed Jiyoon still quiet and unresponsive at the table.

"Hey." Yongsun wasn't good with giving comfort, but she could do this. "I promise it'll be okay. You'll see." Jiyoon looked at her but didn't say anything. Wheein shooed her out silently, assuring her without words that they would take care of it.