GIJS

Chapter 10

Department Store Turned Upside Down

Yoo Sangheon and Jo Yeonsu were stronger parents than they appeared.

For the past 20 years, the two have run a business together, overcoming numerous challenges.

Economic downturns, COVID-19 shocks, and even betrayals from partners couldn't bring them to their knees.

But at this very moment, they were on the verge of being overwhelmed by an unexpected attack.

Their precious son was dancing right in front of them.

"Yap! Yap!"

With long limbs flailing, performing endlessly unique moves.

What to do?

They were about to burst into laughter.

Just five seconds into the dance, Jo Yeon-soo's arms holding the camera began to tremble. Yoo Sang-hun was already biting his lip. Their faces were rapidly turning red.

It was the most unusual dance they had ever seen.

If it was just a badly performed dance, it wouldn't be this funny. But something was bizarre about it.

Snap! Snap! Slide-.

The movements of the limbs and torso were chaotic, but the fingertips were beautifully alive.

Swish, slide, sweep-.

The movements of the dancing feet were as light as a feather.

How could one move like that?

Despite everything, they managed to hold back their laughter. They clenched their teeth and pinched their thighs.

The reason was simple: a gentleman does not laugh. If the parents laughed here, even the most spirited gentleman would be deflated.

Their son was challenging his dream so seriously; what kind of terrible parents would laugh at that?

"Hyo!"

"Puh-!"

But with an unexpected shout for "Hyo," Yoo Sang-hun was the first to crack.

'Honey! How could you laugh?'

In an instant, Jo Yeon-soo's eyes turned sharply towards him.

"...Tsk-tsk-tsk! Pff-tchk-tchk!"

With his sudden switch to beatboxing, Jo Yeon-soo was impressed by his quick thinking.

'It was so natural, my husband!'

'Of course! We have to endure, honey!'

As the husband beatboxed, the wife added scratches over it. Their chemistry as a recreational duo from their college days shone brightly.

"Puchikachi- pop-chi-!"

"Whikki-whikki! Whikki!"

Whether it was due to his parents joining in or not, Gunja's limb movements became even more exuberant.

It was bad news for them. The more elaborate Gunja's movements became, the harder it was to hold back their laughter.

'Crazy!'

'The difficulty is increasing even more?'

But Yoo Sang-hun and Jo Yeon-soo persevered, clenching their teeth. They had to clear this challenge. They never wanted to be the kind of parents who mock their child's dreams.

Endure, think only of sad things, or even cry if necessary!

With superhuman willpower, they finally succeeded in the laughter-holding challenge. Thanks to their hand-stabilizing feature, they managed to preserve the fan-cam video of Gunja as well.

"Phew."

"Gunja, you did great!"

After the challenge ended, they exchanged glances.

'We did it, honey.'

'Don't let your guard down, it's not over yet.'

After the filming ended, Gunja sat in front of them with an excited face. Although he didn't say anything, they understood what he wanted. He was probably looking for feedback. Another task fell upon the parents.

What should they say?

They could offer unconditional praise. But perhaps what was needed now was a more objective assessment.

Soon the [A-Yuk-Si] training would start, and if they didn't give the right advice now, he might face even greater frustration then.

Determined, Yoo Sang-hun took a deep breath and spoke.

"First of all, you did very well."

"Thank you."

"Hmm, though I don't know much about dancing... it still seems like there are many awkward movements."

"...Yes."

"It looks like you need to practice more."

"I will keep that in mind."

"But your fingertips and foot movements were good! Right, honey?"

Jo Yeon-soo nodded in agreement. Although Gunja didn't receive a lot of praise, he didn't look particularly disheartened.

"Thank you so much for helping today."

"Thank you! We're just glad we could help."

"If you need anything, feel free to ask. I'll send you the fan-cam video right away."

"Yes, then I'll take my leave."

Once Gunja left the room, the two parents could finally sigh with relief.

"Phew."

"Honey, the beatboxing is still alive?"

"And how about your scratching?"

"Well, our Gunja is... haha."

"Well, it happens. When was the last time he danced?"

"That's true, right?"

The couple laughed at each other. They looked even more relieved.

"It's a bit awkward to say, but how did he pass the audition?"

"Probably a visual pick, right?"

"Indeed, our Gunja is quite handsome."

"I hope he doesn't get edited devilishly."

"Exactly."

"There will be more opportunities."

The couple decided to focus on the significance of participating in this [A-Yuk-Si] rather than the results.

* * *

Watching the video on a large monitor, Gunja was in shock and horror.

"Is this really me?"

He wanted to deny reality. Who was that pale giant on the screen? It looked like a newborn fawn had possessed a human body.

"Hah..."

A sigh escaped him. It was so pathetic, so pitiful! He couldn't bear to watch with his eyes open.

Until now, Gunja had never seen himself dance. He had only tried to mimic idol dance videos as closely as possible. This was the downside.

To master a new dance, one needed a great teacher and a way to see oneself. Gunja realized this through the fan-cam video.

"From now on, I must see myself dancing directly."

He was determined, but couldn't come up with a solution. He couldn't ask his parents for another fan-cam. Showing that awful fawn dance was already enough of a misstep.

As Gunja was lost in thought, his parents suggested a solution.

"Gunja, why not use a practice room?"

His parents booked a practice room for him. With only 2 weeks until the training camp, it was too short to register at a dance academy, but the practice room was available.

Gunja's mouth dropped open in amazement at the sight of the practice room for the first time.

Wow, such a wonderful space exists.

The practice room had one wall covered in mirrors, making it easy to check his movements. Additionally, there were soundproof booths for singing practice and simple recording equipment.

"Thank you so much!"

From that day, Gunja attended the practice room every day. Over 10 hours a day, he practiced basic moves until his limbs couldn't move anymore.

Now he had to learn a completely new style of dance and song. To do that, he needed to solidify his basics first.

"Ugh-."

Sometimes he felt nauseous, but thanks to the tough training with Teacher Lee Arong, his stamina improved. Increased lung capacity and better abdominal pressure gave strength to his voice.

Day by day, week by week, and over ten days...

In a short time, Gunja's movements and voice were noticeably changing.

Perhaps it was thanks to this.

[User: Yu Gunja] [Appearance: B+] [Singing: D+] [Dance: C+] [Charm: A]
"Wow!"

The ratings for singing and dancing on the status screen each rose by one level.

Gunja felt a sense of pride. It was a different kind of satisfaction than when he used points to increase his ratings.

Moreover, the unexpected surprises didn't end there. Four days before the entrance ceremony, his parents called him over.

"Gunja, are you going to practice again tomorrow?"

"Yes, I'm planning to."

"How about taking a day off tomorrow? You should buy some clothes and get your hair done."

Gunja responded with a light laugh.

"Haha, you don't need to worry. I've already chosen my outfit."

"Oh? What's the outfit?"

"It's this traditional robe. I wore it for the last audition as well."

Gunja took out a blue and white robe. At the same time, his parents' eyes widened in surprise.

"Hmm, it looks like you're also surprised by its elegance. It truly fits the title of 'the people in white clothes'."

"I did consider more extravagant outfits, but I thought standing out too much wouldn't be good..."

"So, you chose this outfit to avoid standing out?"

"Yes. Isn't it subtly nice?"

It was indeed a calm and simple outfit.

Gunja was satisfied, but his parents seemed to have something to say.

"Um, Gunja."

"Yes, Mother?"

"This outfit is a bit... well, isn't it too plain?"

"Is that so?"

On reflection, Mother's point made sense.

After all, it was an idol audition, and it might be necessary to stand out a little.

"Weren't there any other contestants wearing traditional robes last time?"

"Come to think of it, it seems there weren't."

"See? That's why that outfit is too... no, plain."

In the end, Gunja decided to follow his parents' advice and went to the department store to buy a new outfit.

The department store felt like a different world. Everywhere was filled with dazzling lights, and wax mannequins stood around. Modern people sure have created such a magnificent world! Gunja couldn't close his mouth in awe.

"Feel free to take your time and look around, you can buy anything you want."

"Thank you!"

"First, pick out something you like."

Gunja, with a curious face, wandered around until something caught his eye. It was an item he was quite familiar with.

"Oh, what is this?"

Even in this era, a topknot still existed!

He was delighted to see such a rare item. Although the custom of tying up hair seemed to have disappeared, the topknot still existed.

"Shopkeeper, I'd like to try on this topknot."

"Yes? The topknot?"

Gunja pulled up his hair and fixed it with the topknot. Ah, the feeling of pulling the scalp and the lifting of the eye corners. It had been such a long time.

"Excuse me? What are you doing—"

"I've decided. How much is this topknot?"

At that moment, his parents also approached the place where Gunja was. It was a good opportunity to show his parents how he looked with his hair styled.

"Mother, Father!"

"Hmm?"

"This store sells topknots too!"

"Kiddo, that's not a topknot, it's a hair net."

"?"

"Oh my, look at those lifted eye corners."

Gunja was expecting them to be pleased. He was slightly disappointed by their unexpected reaction.

However, after hearing the explanation, he understood. It wasn't a topknot but a hair net, which was usually used by women to fix their long hair.

Gunja and his parents continued to browse various stores. However, besides the topknot, nothing else caught his interest.

Items resembling jeogori or traditional robes were all women's clothing, which was frustrating for Gunja.

"Mother and Father, you need to break out of your biases. Men's and women's clothing are not strictly separate."

"Gunja, still, isn't a dress a bit much?"

The world seemed so narrow-minded. Although he didn't know exactly what a dress was, the airy, fluttering clothes similar to traditional robes were very appealing to him, so he felt regretful.

"Never mind, Gunja. Let's ask the staff for recommendations."

In the end, his parents chose to get help from a staff member. The staff, upon seeing Gunja, brought out a pile of clothes with wide eyes.

"Here, try these and these, and also this one!"

"All of these?"

"Yes!"

With a sigh, Gunja nodded and trudged towards the fitting room.

Since the possession, he had only worn comfortable clothes like sweatshirts and hoodies, so a shirt with many buttons felt extremely awkward.

"How does one even wear this strange jeogori..."

Gunja, struggling with the unfamiliar clothes for a while, finally emerged from the fitting room wearing them. It was his first time in such uncomfortable attire.

"How is it? Doesn't it seem odd?"

"!"