#65

The location for the interview with Weekly Music Q was a studio near Hongdae. As we entered the studio, an editor who introduced herself as Filament greeted us warmly.

"Kyaaa! It's such an honor. L.I.T, everyone. Welcome!"

We bowed at a 90-degree angle toward the editor, who was making a fuss, and took our seats.

She must really be a Filament, as she seemed to know our official seating order well. From left to right, our names were correctly labeled on the back of the chairs.

"Macaron."

Her first word was "macaron."

Truly fitting for a 1st-gen Filament. As I mentioned earlier, the more extraordinary someone is, the thicker their mana, and the thicker their mana, the more they’re drawn to me.

In other words, this editor is no ordinary person either.

"Today’s concept is macaron, right? Looking at your outfits, I can’t help but think of soft, sweet macarons."

Her tone and expressions were more like those of a music show MC than a magazine editor.

"Let me introduce myself properly."

Then, she suddenly stood up, placed both hands neatly on her belly, and bowed.

"I’m Kang Mina, the idol editor for Weekly Music Q and a 1st-gen Filament."

At that, our members also stood up abruptly and bowed to the editor in the same manner.

After finishing the greeting, Jaewon widened his eyes and asked.

"You’re really a Filament?"

"Yes. I’ve joined the fan cafe, and I’m also a member of the official fan club. I’m a certified 1st-gen Filament."

At Kang Mina’s answer, Jaewon and Roa simultaneously let out exclamations of admiration.

Then, Siu chimed in. 

"Then, by any chance, were you the one who came to the fan signing event and requested an interview…?"

"Yes, that’s right."

Mina nodded and glanced at Gyuhyung, who was standing guard by the studio door.

"That oppa over there said no, so I had to leave with a heavy heart."

At Mina’s words, Gyuhyung scratched his head awkwardly and smiled.

At the time, there was no other choice. Company policy stated that we couldn’t do interviews without receiving the question sheet in advance.

Apparently, Dinaple had caused a few incidents during impromptu interviews, so from then on, interviews were only allowed if scheduled in advance and with a question sheet prepared.

"Now, I can finally release that pent-up frustration."

Editor Kang Mina, unable to hide her excitement, pulled out the question sheet.

It was the same one that had been sent to the company earlier.

"Let’s start with the first question."

Mina smiled brightly and looked at me as she asked the question.

"What does this album  mean to L.I.T?"

"Literally, it’s a leap. For L.I.T, the previous album was more like a warm-up, and this album marks the true beginning. It’s a leap to become a better L.I.T. That’s why we tried to pack a lot into it."

After that, she asked a few more questions about the album.

From last night until now, we had thoroughly prepared by assigning who would answer which questions, so we were able to respond without difficulty.

Even the youngest members answered skillfully, and the interview continued smoothly.

Then, out of nowhere, she threw in a question that wasn’t on the sheet.

"I can’t help but ask. Producer Jess. K, who participated in this album from start to finish—what kind of person is he?"

Mina subtly pushed the recorder toward me.

I had a feeling this kind of question would come.

It’s a cliché answer, but in situations like this, it’s best to keep it humble and ordinary.

"There’s nothing special about me. I just enjoy playing instruments and writing songs, so I started it as a hobby, but PD Pyo saw potential in me and helped me a lot…"

"Ah, boring."

A very 1st-gen Filament-like response.

"Humility is a no-no. A king leader like you needs a more impressive reason."

Mina, furrowing her brows and shaking her head, moved the recorder toward Roa, who was sitting next to me.

"Roa, what kind of person is Jess. K?"

"A genius composer or a wizard of music? He plays with music so effortlessly that it feels almost magical. It’s just awe-inspiring."

Roa answered without a hint of hesitation, and Mina smiled in satisfaction and nodded.

"This is it."

Praising Roa for giving the kind of answer one should, Mina brought the recorder back to me.

"They say the 'K' in Jess. K stands for 'King,' right? Agreed?"

I furrowed my brows, wondering what nonsense she was spouting, but the recorder quickly moved to Roa’s lips. Roa immediately responded.

"Yeah, agreed."

A mischievous laugh burst from Mina’s lips.

"Roa, I really like you. We vibe so well."

And then, normal questions resumed.

L.I.T’s worldview, L.I.T’s dorm life, L.I.T’s teamwork.

Thanks to Editor Kang Mina’s joking interview style, the members felt more at ease and answered more smoothly.

No, to be more accurate, they started showing their true colors and got loud.

"There’s no concept of who’s closer to whom. We’re all close. We’ve been like this for years now, so we’re like family."

"The most inconvenient thing about dorm life… is that these guys are dirty?"

"Ah, hyung. We’re not that dirty, okay? You’re just overly clean."

"Kang Ichan overcleans, scrubbing and wiping everything, so it’s actually more inconvenient for us. Humans are supposed to live a little messy to build up their immune systems…"

"Hanjoon hyung, you don’t have the right to say that. Even your immune system would get mad at that level."

After chatting back and forth with Mina for a while, the final mission was finally given to us.

"At this point, I’m curious. What are L.I.T members’ MBTIs?"

MBTI? What’s that?

Wondering if I was the only one who didn’t know, I tensed up, but Siu opened his mouth.

"I’ve never taken an MBTI test before."

Then, the youngest and Roa quietly raised their hands.

"Me neither."

"Oh my, you’ve been so busy that you haven’t even had time to take an MBTI test?"

Mina furrowed her brows as if feeling sorry for us. Then, she quickly smiled and rummaged through her bag to pull out her phone.

"We can do it right now. Shall we take the MBTI test together?"

* * *

The highlight medley was released, and finally, album pre-orders began.

On L.I.T’s official fan cafe, along with the pre-order notice, an announcement for the album fan signing event was also posted. Thanks to that, the pre-order numbers were rising at an incredible rate.

In the early hours of the morning, we returned to the dorm and spent some quiet time in our respective beds.

Judging by the snoring, Hanjoon seemed to have fallen asleep, while Jaewon and Siu were applying face masks together.

Roa was transferring today’s practice footage to his laptop and reviewing it.

"Hyungnim, should we tweak this part a little?"

What he was referring to was the bridge part of the choreography for the sub-title track, .

"Instead of just crossing past each other while Jaewon sings, how about you grab Hanjoon hyungnim?"

Roa, sitting up in bed, tilted his body slightly and stretched his arm back, mimicking grabbing something.

"…Don’t let go. I won’t let go. It fits well with the lyrics too."

"That sounds good."

It was a good idea. Since Roa was in charge of the choreography anyways , we didn’t even need Director Seokho’s approval.

"Let’s try it tomorrow."

"Okay."

When I responded positively, Roa smiled brightly and lay back down, staring at his laptop.

"Then, before going to bed, let’s check the fan cafe… huh?"

Roa, who had just entered the fan cafe, widened his eyes in surprise and sat up abruptly.

"Siu hyungnim. The fans put up a birthday billboard for you?"

"Huh?"

Siu, who had been lying next to Jaewon with a face mask on, sat up, and Jaewon followed suit.

"Where? Where?"

It was true. Siu’s birthday was on November 7th, the same day as our comeback. To celebrate his birthday, which was just ten days away, the Filaments had put up a birthday billboard.

On the fan cafe, posts from Filaments who had taken proof photos in front of the billboard were flooding in.

Took a proof photo in front of our flower fairy Siu’s birthday billboard on my way to work. Siu’s mother, may you live a long and healthy life. Thank you so, so, so much for giving birth to our flower fairy.

His visuals are about to break through the billboard. Jeongu-nim, who organized the billboard, will be blessed.

As posts praising Siu’s visuals lined up, the man himself, Yoon Siu, turned red.

At this point, it’s only right for the person in question to make an appearance as fan service. Siu, covering his flushed cheeks with both hands, peeked at the laptop screen over Roa’s shoulder.

"Uh, where is this?"

"Near our company’s bus stop, Noksapyeong Station, Samgakji Station, Samsung Station… Wow, they even put one up at DDP and Gwanghwamun."

Roa, quickly clicking through and listing the locations of the billboards, suddenly stopped.

"Whoa, they even put up an album promotion billboard?"

"Really. It’s right next to the birthday billboard."

Jaewon, peeling off the face mask he had been wearing, whispered in awe.

"That must’ve cost a fortune."

After quietly observing the situation, I finally closed my book and sat up.

"What time does everyone finish their schedules tomorrow?"

The only group practice we have is in the morning. Tomorrow afternoon, I have to work on Dinaple’s album, Hanjoon has a lyric-writing class, Jaewon is going to feature on CRISTA’s hip-hop duo album, Roa has a special dance lesson with Director Seokho, and Siu has an acting lesson.

"After everyone finishes their schedules, let’s all go take proof photos together."