Chapter 9

“Me in the black and white photo, My world that has spread black – Colours”

On the third day he was awake, Manager-nim, who was back in Seoul, called.

This time via the hostel’s main line.

The boys could be heard in the background too.

“Did you get the package?”

At the end of his first day at the hostel, Young K gave all details of his whereabouts to his Manager.

Hence, Manager-nim and the boys packed him a bag of clothing, some personal stuff, ID and passport, handphone as well as enough cash to pay for his stay and other personal needs.

“Yeah, thanks. How did my wallet get in there?”

“It was sent to the dorm, hand delivered.”

“Mwo? Hand delivered?” Young K was baffled, thinking that his wallet would have disappeared along with his clothes and other belongings that night. “This person knows me well enough then.”

“Looks like it, man,” Jae interjected.

“They left my chain intact too,” Young K said, fiddling with the silver chain around his neck. A going away present from his buddies back home. “But they took my rings.”

“The chain Ter and Don gave you?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s weird, man.”

“Who was the guy who drove here this morning?” Young K suddenly asked about the person who made the delivery, suspecting every random guy in his mind at that moment.

“One of our partners in Japan. He’s clean, don’t worry,” Manager-nim said.

“Ok.”

“He helped to check on you as well.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Anyways,” the Manager-nim continued, “we did some sleuthing on the case. Your love motel pictures, they didn’t start from the Net initially.”

“They didn’t?”

“Nope. They were posters, thrown about at Gangnam and other high density areas.”

“Chincha?”

“Yup. Then, passers-by who came across them, started to snap pictures and upload them on social media,” Young K heard Sungjin explained. “In other words, the actual culprit could not really be identified.”

The conversation was a mad combo of the different boys trying to talk to him over the Manager’s shoulder.

All of them worried of their brother’s predicament at the moment.

The incident happening to Young K could easily befallen them too.

“Man,” Young K slumped by the counter the phone was on.

“Though the malice behind the act was apparent, the motivation was not,” his Manager spoke again. “So in the mean time, you have to stay low, the boys here too. Until all these dies down.”

“JYP is coming clean with the press,” Jae interjected excitedly. “Saying you were drugged and blackmailed.”

“Did anyone asked for anything? Ransom of sorts?”

“No, not yet. So, we’ll wait. PD-nim will also say that you are on sabbatical, writing music but not doing any public appearances. Which is ok, since the next band outing will be in one and a half month’s time or so,” the Manager explained, referring to JYP as PD-nim.

“Ok,” Young K nodded absently.

“So… shall we sneak you back into Seoul?”

“How’s the airport?”

“Kinda ok, but then again, you’ll never know.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Young K went silent for a while.

He really wanted to go back and be with his buddies.

JYP will definitely give him a whipping, but he was prepared for that.

The fact that JYP was willing to send a statement out on how the incident was not his fault and that he was drugged and everything, showed that the President believed in him.

So, he was quite surprised when the following words came out from his mouth.

“Can I stay here still? For at least a few weeks?”

“Mwo?” The band members exclaimed in unison, making the Manager slap his forehead at their excitable nature. He too was surprised with the request.

But this was Young K, after all. Always unpredictable.

Who knows what was going through his mind.

“What will you do there during that time?”

“Well, this place is quiet and peaceful. I can actually write here,” Young K explained. “Also, winter season is ending… so, the hostel is having less and less patrons."

“How will you write without the boys?”

The boys wrote as a group. Often producing the best sounds when they were lounging or goofing around.

“We have some music already written. I’m supposed to do the lyrics. So, I can do that here.”

“What if you get recognised?”

“I think I know what to do about that,” he said confidently.

“You need more money? The one we sent you is just enough for a few days.”

“I’ll try to work part time. Maybe help around the hostel.”

“We can transfer you some more.”

“No, there’ll be a trail. We don’t want to chance that. We don’t know what kind of people we’re dealing with.”

The manager kept silent, trying to assess the situation from afar.

“Young K, are you sure about this?”

“Yeah.”

The manager sighed in defeat. He knows it was useless to sway Young K once the latter has made up his mind.

“Sounds like not a bad idea, actually, I’ll see what PD-nim says first though.”

“Yeah, better get his clearance.”

“You really sure about staying, hyung?” Dowoon asked in concern.

“Yeah, I am,” Young K nodded into the phone. “Don’t worry Dowoon.”

“Get a local number quickly for the phone, then.”

This time the statement came from Wonpil.

“I will,” Young K smiled softly at his buddies’ concerns. His working family was just as tight as his real family back home, and for that he was really thankful. “My family... did they ask for me?”

“Are you kidding?” Jae said. “Your Omma and Terry called almost every other day. But we told them you’re safe.”

“Good, we don’t want to worry them unneccessarily. Don't tell them my whereabouts either, ok. I’ll call them once I get a number.”

“But are you, though? Safe, that is?” Sungjin asked. “Are these people treating you nicely?”

“Oh yeah, they’re great. The hostel owners….I owe them big time. They never once asked me about payment and stuff. And I do think they’ve figured out that I’m hiding or something.”

“Arasso,” the Manager spoke again. “Money’s not a problem. We’ll compensate them definitely. In fact, you don’t have to work either, just stay low in your room.”

“You know I’ll die if I do that,” Young K laughed.

Manager-nim laughed too.

Young K was a good kid. Everyone knows that, even the President.

And too talented to boot.

JYP just cannot afford to lose him.

So, unlike the Junhyeouk case, this time around JYP planned to stick up for his boy.

“Ok, son. Take care of yourself there. Keep in touch.”

Foxi's Notes - Call me biaised but personally, I do think Young K is the most talented amongst the Day6 boys. Sungjin has the most stable voice & dependable leader, Jae the sweetest vocals  & killer rythm, Wonpil the most charasmatic with the most distinctive sounds  (he writes the sweetest of songs too) & Dowoon the cutest maknae (period 😁) . 

Young K, however, is the most versatile amongst them.

Having auditioned as a singer, he was later trained as a rapper because JYPE  lack rappers for that batch of trainees (times of Got7 & Twice). Started as a guitarist for 5Live/Day6, he had to switch & made way for Jae & took up bass - simply because. So now, he officially sings, raps & plays the bass for the band.  He also writes the lyrics for all their songs (either on his own or together with others), composes, beatboxes, plays all other instruments, dances (he is the only one who can legitimately dance for the group (discounting 'Dance God Sungjin' lols) & is a human trumpet. So there, omma's not biaised but I credit a talented boy as how he truly is 😊

Get to know Young K - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qPjdNv80yo (credit to the owner) (don't let his Konglish at the beginning fool you, tho :) )