Siblings Working in Business (224)
After Do-jin joined NRY Entertainment, he was given time to adjust, since it was a different company from Turn Up, despite his experience.
Since Hyun-woo was currently the only manager at NRY Entertainment, he naturally became Do-jin’s senior.
And today was the filming day for their upcoming single <Curse>’s music video.
It was the day Seul-gi’s outfits, which she had worked on all night, would shine.
Eun-ho, wearing a suit jacket over bare skin, headed to the set.
The black ostrich feathers Seul-gi had hand-sewn onto the lapels of his jacket swayed elegantly with his movements.
The thick glitter sprinkled on the feathers and in Eun-ho’s hair sparkled luxuriously under the bright set lights.
At the corner of Eun-ho’s eyes, accentuated with red makeup…
Two small, black, teardrop-shaped jewels were attached to his cheek, just below his right eye.
“Eun-ho, come here for a sec. Take a look at this.”
“Sorry I’m late.”
“It’s fine. It’s beautiful, worth the wait.”
“Beautiful…?”
“It’s not exactly sensual, compared to Chang-seok Oppa, in my opinion—”
“Ah, yes. So what did you want to show me?”
Not wanting to hear the newlyweds’ lovey-dovey talk, Eun-ho cut off PD Cheol-soo and asked.
PD Cheol-soo chuckled and handed Eun-ho the storyboard, filled with drawings.
While Eun-ho was seriously discussing the storyboard, Eun-ji was still changing.
Her hair was neatly styled in an updo, held in place by a hairpin.
But unlike her demure hairstyle, Eun-ji’s outfit was a daring white dress, with the right shoulder exposed and a large oval cutout on the left side, revealing her ribs and hip.
Eun-ji, seeing the dress for the first time, thought,
‘A month without tteokbokki, well endured.’
Unsure what kind of outfit she would be wearing, she had refrained from eating anything besides rice, giving up even bread and her beloved tteokbokki, and enduring three PT sessions a day.
CEO Park had said it wasn’t necessary to go to such lengths, but Eun-ji shook her head.
‘The camera adds ten pounds!’
Eun-ji, remembering her past, didn’t want to repeat the humiliation of her debut.
It might not have seemed humiliating to others, but she had trusted CEO Park’s words, “It’s okay.”
She vividly remembered the moment she saw herself on TV.
Her breath hitched.
The camera was ruthless.
‘Everyone said I looked great, but…’
The main reason was that she didn’t look as good as she had imagined.
There were so many things she disliked.
Her awkward gaze, since it was her first time…
Her sudden ad-libs, forgetting the lyrics due to nerves…
Although it garnered a positive response, still…
She wanted to showcase 100% of what she had practiced.
So she worked hard on every aspect.
After regaining her memories, she prepared even more meticulously for every music video shoot, remembering that time.
This was the result.
Regardless of what others said…
She had reached her goal through her own efforts.
That’s why she was even more satisfied.
Looking at the dress alone, it seemed long, even in the front, but…
When she put it on, it barely reached mid-thigh, perhaps because of her height.
But the back of the dress, in contrast, was long enough to trail on the floor, creating an unbalanced silhouette.
‘Perfect. Absolutely perfect.’
Rustle.
Eun-ji turned in front of the mirror, checking her appearance.
The long train of the dress dragged on the floor, the strings of clear crystals at her waist shimmering with every movement.
“Do you like it?”
“Fucking love it.”
“Hahaha.”
Eun-ji, inadvertently cursing in her excitement, replied to Seul-gi’s question.
But Seul-gi, far from being offended, just smiled and smoothed down the hem of Eun-ji’s dress.
“Seeing you in it makes all those all-nighters worth it. And your makeup is waterproof.”
Seul-gi couldn’t help but admire Eun-ji’s stunning appearance.
Especially her toned abs, prominently displayed in the oval cutout from her ribs to her hip.
Eun-ji’s hard work and dedication enhanced the dress’s mystical aura.
She had a different kind of allure compared to the languid Eun-ho.
Although it was just for a short scene, it was Seul-gi’s masterpiece, designed to highlight the concept of ‘transformation’ and leave a lasting impression.
“Now, for the finishing touch…”
After Eun-ji’s makeup was done…
While Seul-gi had adorned Eun-ho’s lapels with black ostrich feathers, she added white feathers around Eun-ji’s hairpin, creating a halo effect.
“Done! Wow! Perfect, absolutely perfect!”
Seul-gi, unable to contain her excitement, showered Eun-ji with praise.
Eun-ji, beaming with pride, looked at herself in the mirror, then put on her 9cm gladiator heels, which looked like silver straps wrapped around her bare feet.
Then, with a confident stride, she headed towards the set.
Tap, tap, tap, click.
Using the clicking sounds of her heels, Eun-ji created the beat for the hook of <Curse> and hummed along.
Curse me, curse me, yeah, it happens sometimes.
She arrived at the set, humming, and opened the door.
A giant chroma key wall, skulls, cobwebs, red lights, a coffin, a black bed with a canopy… decorations reminiscent of Halloween or seductive demons filled the set.
“Wow.”
Eun-ji approached the red spider lilies, drawn to their vibrant color.
She went closer, curious, but they were artificial, contrary to her expectations.
“Aw.”
She had hoped to see the flowers, which she had only seen in comics, in real life.
But despite her disappointment, Eun-ji couldn’t take her eyes off the spider lilies, touching them gently.
“Hey, Lee Eun-ji.”
“Yeah?”
Eun-ho called out to Eun-ji, who was engrossed in admiring the set.
“What’s this?”
“Today’s storyboard.”
Eun-ho handed her several sheets of paper.
It was the storyboard for the music video, with drawings of the scenes.
Eun-ji flipped through the pages, and then…
“You… little shit…”
Eun-ji’s expression hardened.
She had been suspicious since this morning.
Seul-gi suddenly saying she forgot her towel and going back to the company.
「“Your makeup is waterproof.”」
Even that casual remark from earlier!
She had thought it was just a scene with rain…
‘They say you shouldn’t trust anyone with black hair…’
She hadn’t expected to be betrayed by Eun-ho like this.
The storyboard Eun-ji received from Eun-ho showed a woman in a dress, her neatly styled hair coming undone as she fell into red water.
“I strongly recommended it. Good job, right?”
She wanted to rip the corners of Eun-ho’s smugly smiling mouth, just like tearing kimchi with her bare hands.
“No, but the outfit is so pretty, why do we have to—!”
“Oh, you’re right, I didn’t notice, but the outfit is pretty.”
“Shut up!”
Just then…
“Ah, this… don’t tell me.”
Was it ‘DUO’?
Eun-ji suddenly remembered the music video where Eun-ho fell into black water.
“That black water scene, you, you, you!!!”
“Oh, right. That’s it. It’s an homage.”
“Homage, my ass! This is revenge because you had to do it!”
“Oh, you know me so well. You gotta use your skills when you have them.”
When Eun-ho grinned mischievously, Eun-ji shrieked,
“Agh!!! I hate you, Lee Eun-ho! Seriously!”
The staff, preparing for the shoot, turned their heads at Eun-ji’s scream.
But the moment they saw Eun-ho standing next to her…
‘Ah.’
They all seemed to understand and went back to their work.
Some, however, who didn’t know their dynamic, looked at them with concern, wondering if they should intervene.
Among them was Do-jin, who was participating in their filming for the first time.
When he was at Turn Up Entertainment…
‘Was it Music Bank?’
Or Inkigayo?
Anyway…
E-UNG had appeared on a TV in the hallway, performing before one of their artists.
He was watching with a colleague when…
「“They look more like actors than idols, don’t they?”」
His colleague had said that.
He hadn’t been interested in the siblings back then, so he didn’t think much of it, but…
‘I understand now.’
Turn Up Entertainment also had idols.
But Turn Up focused on a cute, teen image.
So, most of their female idols were petite, barely over 160cm.
None of them had a strong presence like Lee Eun-ji.
So, perhaps because of that…
When he first saw the so-called “E-UNG siblings” on the day of his interview, he only thought, ‘Oh, he’s really handsome in person,’ about Eun-ho.
And about Eun-ji, rather than ‘pretty,’ he thought, ‘Wow, she looks fierce,’ even though she wasn’t wearing any makeup.
Now, seeing them at work…
Do-jin’s initial impression changed slightly.
When Eun-ho first appeared, he thought, ‘Wow, he’s definitely idol material.’
Then, when Eun-ji entered the set…
Do-jin’s breath hitched.
“Whoa…”
An involuntary exclamation escaped his lips.
‘She looks like a goddess.’
He continued to be mesmerized even as she admired the artificial spider lilies.
But his admiration shattered the moment Eun-ji spoke to Eun-ho.
“You… little shit…”
Shatter.
It was a line that truly broke the illusion.
Do-jin blinked, watching Eun-ji growl at Eun-ho.
“Agh!!! I hate you, Lee Eun-ho! Seriously!”
Eun-ji’s outburst at Eun-ho’s nonchalant reply…
‘Ah, so they’re this kind of siblings.’
He wondered if their close relationship was just an act.
After all…
Most of the female idols at Turn Up were just putting on a show of friendship.
The moment the cameras were off and the fans were gone, they would distance themselves from each other.
And if they were in the same group, the power struggles were intense…
Dealing with that had been one of the reasons he left Turn Up.
Compared to that, Lee Eun-ho and Lee Eun-ji’s fights…
…were child’s play.
At least they didn’t scheme behind each other’s backs.
“Ah!”
Just then…
Eun-ji, while bickering with Eun-ho, bumped into a staff member who suddenly approached.
“S-sorry.”
“It’s, okay.”
As Eun-ji quickly apologized…
The staff member touched the brim of his cap, gave a cursory reply as if he was busy, and walked away.
Eun-ho watched him go with a cold gaze.
“See, I told you to be careful.”
Then, as if nothing had happened, he turned to Eun-ji and said jokingly,
“It’s your fault, Lee Eun-ho.”
“Haha. Yeah.”
While Eun-ji grumbled, Eun-ho walked past her and said,
“I’m going to the bathroom. Tell the director if he’s looking for me.”
“Taking a shit?”
“Yeah.”
Do-jin wasn’t oblivious.
He could tell Eun-ho wasn’t heading towards the bathroom.
As Eun-ho left, Do-jin turned to Hyun-woo.
“Sunbae-nim.”
“Yes?”
“I think there’s an unauthorized person on set.”