Reboot the heyday

Thank you to reader "I Like You" for becoming the 118th Alliance Master of this book!
Another belated thank you, but the best encounters never come late; we're always in our prime. I've already lost over ten pounds, wait for my cross-dressing thank you! This section is free.

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"It turns out that it was all just self-deception."

The thought is like a tiny thorn, stuck in the heart, not fatal, but causing a continuous, subtle, yet clear, pain.

Elbow Sister had always known that Wang Taika had many female confidantes. She had even tried to convince herself that this wasn't the first time she had met such people.

But "knowing" and "seeing with one's own eyes" are two different things. The impact of imagining how he interacts with others is vastly different from witnessing firsthand the natural intimacy and tacit understanding that comes from being intimate.

The relaxation and happiness he exudes when he's with others is something he can't fake.

And what about me? When I'm with him, I always subconsciously act a little cautiously, afraid of touching on past wounds and also afraid of revealing my uncertain feelings.

There always seemed to be an invisible membrane separating them.

I originally thought it was because I was afraid to cross the line, but now I realize that I have never actually met the other person, so how can I cross the line?

What am I expecting?

Elbow Girl asked herself this question in her heart, with a hint of bitter self-mockery.

Does she expect him to only have her by his side? That's unrealistic. Does she expect him to show her the same pure and innocent smile he gives to others? But the scars of the past lie between them; that ease may never have belonged to them in the first place.

My thoughts were suddenly pulled apart.

The makeup artist gently patted her shoulder: "Tzuyu-xi, all done! How does it look?"

Elbow Girl opened her eyes and looked in the mirror. The girl in the mirror had exquisite makeup and bright eyes; she looked like a perfect idol. She forced a smile and gave the makeup artist a thank-you smile: "Yes, you look beautiful. Thank you for your hard work, unnie."

But that smile didn't truly reach his eyes.

Throughout the subsequent recording of the program, Elbow Girl continued to act adorably and interacted well with the host, perfectly fulfilling the responsibilities of an idol.

But even in those brief moments, Elbow Girl's thoughts would drift away, and her heart would feel as if it were being gently gripped by an invisible hand, tingling with a dull, aching sensation.

After finishing work, she declined the members' suggestion to go out for breakfast together and returned to her residence alone. She kicked off her shoes, threw herself onto the soft bed, and pulled the blanket over her head.

Darkness and silence amplified all the senses. Feelings of grievance, bitterness, a trace of resentment, and a sense of powerlessness over one's own situation surged like a tide.

"What a fool," Elbow Girl muttered to herself under the covers, her voice slightly nasal.

This sour feeling wasn't like intense pain, which could be expressed through shouting. It was more like a slow, insidious permeation, silently spreading to every corner of her heart, leaving her feeling listless.

At the same time, it cast a gray shadow called "reality" over that budding, unconfirmed affection.

Elbow Girl needs time to process this sudden, unexpected jealousy and clarity on her own.

In fact, many things were foreshadowed long ago, and even the directions from which the two people came had already determined these things.

Although they are both from China, Elbow Girl comes from Taiwan, which has not yet been reunited with China. While there are many Chinese people in the South Korean entertainment industry, they are essentially all within their own circles.

In this great nation, there are thousands of kilometers between the easternmost and westernmost points, yet people from the westernmost and easternmost points can sit together and chat without any barriers.

But Elbow Girl is an exception, separated only by a shallow strait. This isn't her problem, nor is it anyone else's problem; it's simply a matter of reality.

Elbow Girl had truly envied that kind of closeness based solely on shared origins. But now, she was destined never to have it.

This is a nation's regret and scar, but even a small drop of water from history, falling on an individual, is enough to suffocate them.

Actually, there's another word here that I don't quite understand yet, but I've felt it all along: homesickness. It's because I often don't know how to deal with myself, so I often have to pretend to be silly and clueless, which gives me a cute, "slow-to-react" image.

Is all of this good or bad?

Two flowers bloom, one branch each.

While Elbow Girl was left to suffer in silence, Wang Taika actually encountered something even more absurd.

Wang Taika never imagined that his relationship with the girl in front of him would take such a turn today.

Logically, we should have left this part as suspense, building up more backstory and revealing the absurd story gradually. Ideally, it should have been a series of ten or more chapters, keeping readers completely engrossed.

Unfortunately, reality is always so unpredictable, and it doesn't give you a chance to write.

After sending Xueqiu (a virtual gift), Wang Taika decided to stop by SM Entertainment for some business. These were all familiar collaborations involving resource coordination. He wouldn't normally need to do anything, but he was unusually early today and had nothing else to do, so he decided to work a little.

I won't go into details, but it was basically done in about half an hour.

After finishing my work, I headed out, not running into many acquaintances along the way. The company's turnover rate is quite fast, like a cycle of metabolism; the staff has already changed completely.

This reminded Wang Taika of a classic paradox: the Ship of Theseus.

There is a ship that can sail the seas for hundreds of years. Whenever a plank rots, it is replaced. The question is, if hundreds of years later, all the parts of this ship have been replaced, will the resulting ship still be the original Ship of Theseus, or a completely different ship?
Wang Taika no longer wants to think about these philosophical questions. After all, a "river that reaches the depths of memory" had trapped him for the first half of his life.

But if one day in the future, when groups like Girls' Generation, f(x), and Red Velvet are no longer in SM Entertainment, will SM Entertainment still have anything to do with me?
Lee Soo-man, I'm starting to understand your decision to leave.

Even though things haven't completely changed yet, Wang Taika still feels a sense of unreality when he thinks about how he used to work here.

Nothing in this world changes more than this. If only...
Wang Taika was being sentimental after getting off the elevator when he saw a somewhat familiar figure who looked unusually flustered at the moment.

Hey there, isn't this Dongzi?
Jin Dongtian, that idiot, was walking in from outside, but he seemed to have something on his mind, walking with his head down and slightly turning his body to avoid passing people.

If it were anyone else, they would simply turn slightly to the side and avoid each other if they met face to face.

But Wang Taika loves to act cheeky, and remembering all the trouble he'd caused before, while not exactly angry, he really deserved to be taught a lesson. So, I straightened my shoulders and refused to back down!
Jin Dongtian had actually turned slightly to avoid it, but she didn't look up, walking with her head down, absentminded. Plus, she hadn't expected anyone to deliberately cause trouble, so she bumped right into Wang Taika.

Wang Taika remained motionless.

Jin Dongtian panicked and immediately rolled backward, landing on his buttocks.

"Oh dear! I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!"

Kim Dong-won, who was knocked down, apologized first, looking flustered and apprehensive, which made Wang Taika both amused and exasperated.

However, when Kim Dong-won looked up and saw it was Wang Tai-ka, she became even more embarrassed. She stood up abruptly and almost instinctively turned around, trying to pretend she hadn't seen him and quickly escape from this embarrassing scene.

However, the movement was a bit too hasty, so when I picked up the bag, the contents were thrown out with the sudden drop. And with that fall, some of them were damaged, so...
"Buzz buzz buzz!"

A pink, bouncy egg with a connecting cable was started up just like that.

Moreover, unlike what is shown in Japanese movies, this thing in reality is extremely noisy and cannot possibly be silent.

It was rush hour, and people were coming and going. At this time, many employees who were usually in a hurry stopped rushing to clock in and sign in for work.

I can go to work anytime, at worst I'll lose a day's pay. But this scene is something I've never seen before in my life.

At this moment, not to mention Kim Dong-won's expression, even the well-informed Wang Taika was dumbfounded.

Because Wang Taika saw it with his own eyes—it fell out of her bag! (End of Chapter)