GIJS

Chapter 162 Dangerous English

After watching several refreshing concept idol performances, Gunja seemed to finally understand what "freshness" was.

"Ah, so this is the kind of vibe it has."

"Right. Do you get it now?"

Gunja nodded. This was definitely different from the feel of perilla oil. It should be something much fresher, more vibrant, with a burst of lively energy.

Seeing this, it became clear why SHINO chose "freshness" as 7IN's weakness. Indeed, "freshness" was a concept completely opposite to what 7IN had done before.

"Hm, so how should we set up the stage this time?"

"How about using wordplay again?"

"Wordplay? How?"

"Shorten 'cheerful freshness' to 'cheery'."

"···Huh, cheery···."

"Wow···."

"···I guess I need to ask Team Leader Seo to make a turtle ship."

"Hahaha, if it's cheery, who will play Admiral Yi Sun-sin~?"

"Uh, I'm against that. This time, we need to clearly set up the stage with the 'freshness' concept, not just using it as a keyword. Plus, wordplay is not our weakness, but our strength. More importantly, unlike Chinese friends, Japanese ones have never provoked us."

"True. Suddenly shifting to 'cheery' would make us look like we're itching for a fight."

"Exactly. I've thought about a Yi Sun-sin concept stage, but let's save that for later. For now, let's create a freshness concept stage."

Freshness, freshness.

At that moment, Gunja, who had been lost in thought, suddenly threw out an idea.

"First love."

"Hmm?"

"How about using first love as the theme?"

"Oh, first love?"

"It's cliché, but it seems to fit well with freshness."

"We haven't done a freshness-themed stage before, so approaching it with a universal keyword might be a good idea."

"Hahaha, I like it too~ First love stories are fun~"

"Hehe, Siwoo knows what's up."

"Gunja~ Tell us about your first love~"

"Huh? Me? Why?"

"Because you brought up first love~"

"Hmmm, first love..."

"Wow, you're really going to tell us?"

Seeing Gunja's contemplative expression, the other members leaned in. They had never heard of Gunja's dating history before.

"Gunja, have you ever been in a relationship?"

"I've never dated anyone, but I've had a crush."

"Really? With that face?"

"Who was the blessed one?"

"···G-Gunja-hyung had a crush...?"

"Interesting."

"Yuk, look at Hyuk's eyes sparkling! It's scary!"

"Haha, everyone calm down. It's actually not a big story."

Calming the members, Gunja continued his tale. It was the autumn of the year he turned fourteen. After the hot summer ended, as the brown leaves began to fall, Gunja met his first love.

"Our first meeting was accidental. I was sneaking home after a pipa lesson at a tavern, and I first saw her on my way back in the evening."

"Oh, how was it?"

"Was she pretty?"

"Who did she resemble?"

"I don't know who she resembled, but her eyes were very clear and beautiful."

"Wow—."

"Our eyes met by chance, and she stared directly at me without ever looking away."

"Wow, amazing."

"···So what happened?···"

"I ended up looking away first."

"Aw, you lost! Gunja lost!"

"Taewoong, love isn't a competition."

"Really? Didn't you lose from the start?"

"Ugh..."

"What's wrong, Gunja? Are you ignoring me? I've been in relationships too, you know?"

"Anyway, from that first encounter, my heart started to race."

Gunja turned away from Taewoong and continued with his first love story.

"The accidental first meeting ended like that, and I thought I'd never see her again."

"But you met her again!"

"Yes. I ran into her again by chance while walking the same path."

"And then? Did you avoid eye contact again?"

"No, this time I gathered my courage."

"Oh, you used all your courage."

"Taewoong, be quiet."

"Wow, this is the first time I've seen Hyuk scold someone!"

"Did you just stare at each other?"

"No. After staring at me for a while, she slowly blinked. Strangely, seeing that made my eyes slowly close too."

"And then? What happened?"

"This time, she came closer to me."

"Wow, wow, wow—."

"Oh, so Gunja won—!?"

"Taewoong, be quiet."

"···Did she speak to you first?···"

"No, she didn't speak. She left a soft whisper and brushed past me."

"Wow, she sounds mysterious."

"Yes. Mysterious is the right word."

"So, there must have been some kind of connection between you two. To stare at each other like that even though it was your first meeting."

The boys were now deeply engrossed in Gunja's first love story.

"What happened next? Did you meet again in the same place?"

"No. This time, we met under a persimmon tree. As the leaves began to fall, she looked a bit melancholic."

"Hahaha, you didn't just stare again this time, did you?"

"No, this time I took the initiative."

"Oh, how?"

"I reached out my hand to her."

"Wow, suddenly physical contact?"

"This hyung was quite bold."

"···So did she take your hand?···"

"No..."

"Pfft, you got all gloomy suddenly."

"I acted too rashly. She glared at my hand for a moment, then slapped it and walked away."

"Oh, oh..."

"Did she seem very conservative?"

"So, is that the end? Did you never see her again?"

"Gunja lost. Gunja lost!"

"You idiot, there's no win or loss in love."

However, Gunja's expression, which had been a bit melancholic, brightened up again.

"But the encounter didn't end there. A few days later, I met her again under the persimmon tree."

"That's quite a persistent fate."

"So, what did you do this time?"

"She was looking at the persimmons again. I happened to have a ripe persimmon from the tavern in my pocket."

"Wow, a ripe persimmon!"

"I carefully took the persimmon out of my pocket and offered it to her. I cut it in half to show her the flesh."

"Wow, this hyung is really something. Since physical contact didn't work, you tempted her with food?"

"Hahaha, did it work?"

Siwoo's question made Gunja smile contentedly and nod.

"After tasting the persimmon, she changed from being so aloof."

"Really? Did the persimmon flirting actually work?"

"That's not flirting, it's fruiting."

"Pwahahaha, fruiting—."

"Hyuk, don't make me laugh with your serious face."

"This started out nostalgic but is getting funnier and funnier."

"···Huh, she must have really liked persimmons..."

"So, did things go well after that?"

"I'm not sure what 'well' means, but we often went for walks at night. We shared persimmons, and sometimes she would sit on my lap."

"Wow, wow, was she a baby when you were young?"

"That's quite bold."

"···So, what about kisses..."

"Hehe, Yuchan is indeed a young man with a lot of interest in such things."

"Oh, no! I just..."

"But we preferred eye contact to kissing."

Gunja's story of his first love was not very long.

Gunja's first love, who shared eye contact, patted his head, and sometimes shared persimmons, disappeared like the wind one day.

"Huh..."

"She just disappeared without saying anything? Didn't leave any contact?"

"It couldn't be helped. Back then, there were no smartphones."

"So, when was that? What kind of world did you live in..."

"Well, I guess that was my first love."

"···So sad..."

"Yeah, suddenly disappearing like that... It's like a disappearing act."

"By the way, I wonder who was the person who captured Gunja's heart and then ran away?"

"Hahaha, a person~?"

"Hmm? Siwoo, do you know something?"

"Well, I think I know a little about who Gunja liked~"

"What? Tell me too!"

After Gunja's first love story ended, the other members briefly shared their own first love stories.

"···I don't think I've had a first love yet..."

"Yeah, Yuchan is still a kid."

"But you must have had someone you liked, right? Hehe."

"I don't think so yet. I haven't really felt that fluttery feeling."

"Really? I thought you had been in about ten relationships."

"Ugh, absolutely not."

"So where did all that thirst come from?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure? Maybe I grew up with three older sisters, hehe."

Following Yuchan's and Hyun-su's stories, Taewoong began his tale.

"I had a crush on a girl I went to taekwondo class with."

"Taekwondo? You've done everything physical."

"It was the first time I was outshone by a girl."

"Pwahaha, right. Girls are usually bigger in the upper grades of elementary school."

"But was that really love? Isn't it just competitiveness?"

"Ji Hyun-su, you don't understand. Love can be competitive too."

"Are you crazy?"

Si-woo and In-hyuk's first loves were not Korean.

"Haha, I had a brief romance with my first love."

"Oh, who was it?"

"Emily, I think she's still in Paris."

"Whoa, she was French. That sounds pretty cool."

"I also had a foreigner. Her name was Maria..."

"Maria? Wasn't she the girlfriend of a gang boss?"

"...No, she was a friend from a book club..."

After an exciting session of first love stories, the members' hearts were somewhat united.

"Then let's make the 'refreshing' song theme about first love."

"Great, let's proceed!"

"Haha, none of them are the same."

"...It wasn't an impression?"

"Hyun-su, don't say that. He's sensitive about his impressions."

While 7IN was deciding on the theme for their 'refreshing' concept song, the Japanese team SHINO was struggling with English pronunciation.

The Guardians, who identified SHINO's weakness, pointed out their clumsy English pronunciation. Consequently, SHINO's song for this competition had many English lyrics.

After the meeting, Gunja wandered around Dynasty Castle. Hearing SHINO practicing from afar, Gunja became curious and listened intently.

"...Father, Mother..."

"...And My Big Brother..."

"...My Big, Big Brother..."

"Hmm?"

Gunja's ears perked up as he listened to the lyrics. As English is a Western language and the current global lingua franca, Gunja had always been interested in it.

Gunja had been studying English on and off and could understand basic words by now.

But these lyrics... what are they?

Gunja muttered the lyrics SHINO was practicing and strolled through the main hall. Just then, one of the members of Veloce noticed him.

"!"

Seeing this, the Veloce member quickly ran to 7IN to inform them.

"Hey, hurry to the main hall!"

"Huh? Why, what's going on?"

"Gunja is walking around the main hall, muttering 'bura-ja, bura-ja'!"