Page 30 of Idol Moves

09

Tae Hyun slowly drizzled the golden honey onto his granola and greek yogurt. Then he smiled as he dipped his spoon into the bowl and gave everything a good stir. He wasn’t practicing that day, so he could actually eat something in the morning. And he’d never known that three simple ingredients could make such a delicious breakfast until Jason introduced it to him. Then he sighed, thinking about how much he missed dance practice. It had already been several days. And it would probably be at least a few more until they found a new studio. With Alex’s studio becoming a security risk, it was no longer an option.

Tae Hyun brought his coffee and cereal to the table so he could eat while he scrolled through the news on his tablet. But he took in the view first. The sun had just come up, so the light shining down on the Los Angeles skyline still had a rosy golden hue. Jason was still asleep, or Tae Hyun would’ve made him come look at it. Not that Jason would’ve appreciated it. He probably would’ve insisted on saying something silly, like how he preferred the view of Tae Hyun more. But his ears warmed at the imagined compliment anyway.

Tae Hyun had eaten half his cereal and yogurt before finally tearing himself from the view and turning to his tablet. It was the end of the day back in Seoul, so the late news broadcasts would already be online to stream. As much as he’d gotten used to reading, hearing, and speaking English all day, he still liked to get his news in Korean. Especially if it was news about him.

Tae Hyun was still scanning the headlines when a news alert popped up on his screen. He’d programmed the alert for when a story was published mentioning both him and KBR. Most of them were the same rehashing of what he’d done to get fired, so he didn’t expect much when he clicked on the alert. But his heart nearly stopped when he read the new headline on the web page.

KBR Cancels Release of XTC Tribute Compilation

Rumors have swirled around the possible release of an XTC tribute album featuring re-recordings of XTC hits by other KBR recording artists, including the DoubleDown Boys, Dyn4sty, and Cherry Squad. But KBR put those rumors to rest today, announcing that the project has officially been canceled. According to a recently televised interview with KBR Managing Director Choo Ji Hoon, the project had never grown beyond the concept stage, and moving forward with it was inappropriate “given recent circumstances.” In the interview, Director Choo also–

“No.” Tae Hyun shook his head. “Why would he do that?”

Tae Hyun had to see the interview. He shoved his chair back and stood, knocking over his coffee as he grabbed his tablet and rushed to the lounge. He barely noticed when the coffee cup smashed on the floor. Tae Hyun tossed his tablet on the couch, grabbed the remote from the coffee table, and turned on the giant TV. It took him a minute to find the web video streaming app and then a few more to find the news video. He hesitated before opening it. Did he really want to see it? There was no possible way it would make him anything besides angry. But that was just an excuse. He needed to know.

Tae Hyun clicked into the video, and a larger-than-life Choo Ji Hoon appeared on the screen, seated behind a desk on the set of an evening news program. Tae Hyun hadn’t seen or spoken to Ji Hoon since his last day at the KBR building. Did he look older? Possibly. But the lower-thirds title above the news crawler immediately set Tae Hyun’s nerves on edge.KBR Managing Director Choo Ji Hoon sets the record straight about Woo Tae Hyun. He quietly growled as he shook his head. Then he stopped putting it off and started the video.

“We’re joined this evening by KBR Managing Director Choo Ji Hoon,”said a bland news anchor Tae Hyun didn’t know. “Welcome, Director Choo.”

Ji Hoon offered the anchor the same smile he used when humoring the outlandish requests of his young idols.“Thank you for having me.”

“We recently learned that KBR had been planning-”

The anchor continued, asking about the compilation album, which Ji Hoon then claimed had been shelvedgiven recent circumstances.

“And those circumstances include the announcement made by former XTC leader Woo Tae Hyun earlier this year about his romantic relationship with the American actor Jason Park?”

Tae Hyun could see that Ji Hoon was annoyed but doubted the anchor would’ve noticed.“I’m referring to our releasing Mr. Woo from his contract.”

The anchor frowned.“You fired him.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“So the circumstances leading to KBR releasing one of their top artists from his contract have nothing to do with Woo’s announcement?”

Ji Hoon shook his head.“It was a legitimate business decision made by CEO Pak Jun Ho.”

Tae Hyun angrily scoffed at Ji Hoon’s obvious bullshit. He’d always been the benefactor of his former manager’s ability to rewrite reality how it suited him. Being on the other side of that coin didn’t feel as good.

“A business decision.”The anchor’s expression made it clear he didn’t buy into Ji Hoon’s line of reasoning either.“Some segments of the fanbase have speculated that KBR is attacking Tae Hyun because he’s gay.”

Ji Hoon shook his head.“I don’t appreciate the implication that protecting our legitimate business interests is attacking anyone. In any case, whether or not Tae Hyun is gay is irrelevant.”

“But he is gay. He said so himself. Are you saying that’s not a factor?”

“It’s not a factor.”Ji Hoon’s unyielding expression and firm tone were all too familiar.“Woo Tae Hyun is welcome to pursue his solo career as he sees fit. But KBR has a duty to prevent any unfair competition with our current artists.”

“Competition?”The anchor’s smile was unsettling. Tae Hyun was sure he was leading Ji Hoon into a trap.“The music industry, in general, is booming. As is the K-pop industry specifically. Surely there’s space for KBR artists and artists like Tae Hyun to coexist?”

Tae Hyun groaned.Artists like Tae Hyun?What did that even mean?

“It’s not a question of space. It’s a question of why we would even offer it to someone who so willfully turned away from everything we gave him.”

“Are you saying you’d have the same reaction if he’d declared his love for a woman instead of a man?”

Ji Hoon frowned.“Well, no. Of course, not. But–”

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