Debut or Die-Chapter 276
Honestly, if you look around, people keep romances under wraps—but those who want to, still hook up.
But this case is different.
A rookie who hasn’t even debuted yet trying to collect a female idol’s number.
‘Getting a taste of two first-place wins must’ve gone to his head.’
He seems high on his own success. Let’s get the facts straight.
“Did you ask for her number because of personal interest?”
“It’s just... um, our members said during feedback that if we had more questions about the performance, we could ask.”
The voice on the other end sounded sour.
“Then he said, ‘Could you check my interpretation of the song one more time?’ and requested to follow our Inhart account.”
I snorted. I knew where this was going.
“But our company policy is that we don’t have personal accounts.”
“Right. Since we don’t have personal accounts... the conversation somehow drifted to swapping numbers.”
She’s got skills.
“So he asked to exchange numbers?”
“No! I stepped in and gave him the manager unnie’s number!”
Park Minha sounded a little proud. I almost complimented her, then thought better of it.
“But then I realized he must’ve known we can’t make an Inhart account and steered the conversation this way on purpose.”
“I see.”
Sharp observation so far.
‘So she reported to me immediately because she felt uneasy.’
In his career trajectory he’s on a hot streak, but getting involved with some nobody who hasn’t even debuted yet is annoying.
Still... I don’t think Cha Seodam had any genuine interest in a particular member of Mirinae.
‘He wasn’t targeting anyone—just randomly fishing for a contact.’
It wasn’t about wanting a real romance, but showing off.
‘Proof that I’m famous enough to be linked with an idol of this caliber.’
That sentence carried a whiff of condescension.
An idol as a profession.
‘He must think this profession means nothing.’
To treat this kind of fling as a bragging right... even trainees who’ve been grinding for years would think better of it.
But this guy apparently thought, ‘I can get away with this.’
‘He seems savvy and calculating.’
Cha Seodam wiped her SNS account months ago, and from the way she plans her actions and edits, she’s clearly sharp.
And yet he does this... it shows contempt for idols who could become competitors or fans.
‘He thinks he’ll get away with it.’
And that attitude seems to have deepened after recent events.
‘He thought everything was his after two first-place wins—but then Ah-hyun threw a wrench in it. And if he wins again...’
An impressive collaboration of anxiety and arrogance.
‘Hmm.’
After running through a few scenarios, I shrugged and spoke.
“Just leave him be.”
“Pardon?”
I smiled.
“Just leave him be. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about.”
I saw online other contestants rushing up too, but I’m curious to see how they’ll check this guy, drunk on two first-place wins.
I decided, following Seon Ah-hyun’s example, not to confront him directly.
‘Let’s watch him crash on his own.’
A few days later, a post appeared on an internet forum.
[Cha Seodam “Love Heart” Private Account (713)]
It carefully assembled screenshots of a private account whose name resembled Cha Seodam’s old Inhart account that vanished late last autumn.
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(screenshot)
Cha Seodam’s former Inhart account. Mostly used for updates.
Account name was ‘ChatiD1130’
And look at this
(screenshot)
‘ChatiU0417’
This account was created recently.
The numbers seem to follow the pattern of the creation date.
And this account has exactly one follow and one follower lol
It’s a model’s account.
(screenshot)
Clearly a love-heart account for dating lol
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The post claimed this suspicious private account, linked only to a popular model’s account, belonged to Cha Seodam.
“Did she find it or create it?”
According to the explanation, someone traced it back after the model dropped vague hints about dating an Idol Corporation contestant.
-Another delusional theory
-Or just fan fiction?
-Lol, Cha Seodam stans denying reality that your oppa’s in a relationship~
-What kind of “evidence” is this... Idol Corp fans go way too deep
The internet got noisy, but few believed it. Most fans intervened to shut down the baseless conjecture, and it died out quickly.
Just as the uproar was dying down, another post appeared.
[That Account Really Is Cha Seodam’s (1415)]
Someone hacked that private account. While there were no direct face photos, there were plenty of identifiable shots of Cha Seodam’s hands or silhouettes—always standing side by side or holding hands with someone.
“Oh.”
Opening a private account mid–audition program—predictable.
“She let her guard down.”
And the fact that the other party was the model confirmed my ‘show-off’ theory.
But the timing was even more interesting.
‘Did they plan this?’
Judging by the speed of the leaks, it looked like someone had set up all the groundwork in advance, then dropped each piece strategically.
‘Is he in Gold 2?’
He’d already stood out for leadership in the last team round and was climbing even higher.
First place within °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° reach.
If Gold 2 fans saw a chance to topple the current number one, they’d do anything.
‘Whatever the case... the timing’s killer.’
-OMG
-Lol they can’t stop themselves from dating, they even dug up a private account, the truth is ugly
-Just let them live as a god-tier trainee without complicating idol life lol
-Dating isn’t a crime, it’s scary people are trash-talking like this. Cha Seodam didn’t betray anyone
The hacking and photos made fans treat the romance rumor as confirmed, and they ran wild.
‘“Let’s wait and see” never works. Nor “Dating isn’t betrayal.”’
Fans were thrown into confusion. I didn’t need to look to know things inside must’ve been a mess.
‘They’ve lost their momentum.’
They spent money and time buying votes, only to have a real-time dating rumor blast them.
If it had been a “thoughtless words and actions” scandal, fans might’ve rallied. This, however, cooled the mood.
-Wow
-Lololololol
I could already see fans dropping off.
‘With this alone, this win is gone.’
‘Dating makes you look less desperate,’ they’ll say, and their hearts will turn away.
Their momentum broken.
I flicked my phone screen off.
I could easily guess Cha Seodam’s mood.
‘She must feel like lightning struck.’
The best move would be to delete the account now and declare the hack was faked...
But would someone as level-headed as her reach that icy conclusion again so quickly?
‘I doubt it.’
As expected, Cha Seodam’s side only released a “We have never heard of this” statement about a day later.
They couldn’t specifically address the photos.
‘They must’ve failed to fully persuade their side.’
They had enough counter-shots if they’d said it was all misunderstanding or fabrication, but in their anxiety they missed the timing.
“Oh dear, that’s too bad for her~”
Big Sejin strolled past, chuckling at my phone screen. She was toast. I shrugged.
It’d be hard to recover. I turned off my phone.
The only hope would be a show-stealing cut in the back half of the broadcast to win hearts back...
‘She’s smart—maybe she’ll snap out of it and try.’
But it wasn’t over.
A few days later an article broke.
[(Exclusive) “We Were the Scapegoats” Screams of the Eliminated Contestants in the Cruel Idol Corp]
Anonymous interviews with this season’s dropouts of Idol Corporation were published like an exposé.
They spoke mostly about the brutal treatment by production and in-fighting among contestants—and one mentioned “that incident.”
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B: High-ranking contestants would deliberately frame others so they’d be eliminated... (it actually happened.)
B: Since positions overlapped, they’d use their influence to lie and make someone seem like a bad person. (voice trembling)
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Normally this would’ve been stamped out as “rumor” by fan assaults, but after the dating scandal had already ravaged public trust, it spread like wildfire.
—This is total Cha Seodam’s fault (screenshot)
—Lol she gave herself away as soon as she revealed the guy’s identity, insane stanning!
Once this speculation moved from anonymous sites into the light, it dealt Cha Seodam a massive blow.
Before, some reasonable fans still saw her as the hacking victim. Now, it was a clear accusation, and rival fandoms sharpening their knives took full advantage.
—I can’t help but doubt—it fits too perfectly
—We need to think calmly. The dropouts must’ve been so unfairly treated, so no blind defense
—Oh, no wonder I felt uneasy... sob
“Hmm.”
She dug her own grave.
Cha Seodam’s side eventually issued statements proclaiming ignorance and threatening legal action, and it died down—but debut... hmm, even with effort it’ll be a close call.
With scandals in both passion and character, the damage is irreversible.
“This is the end.”
I shrugged, about to switch off my screen, then paused.
‘Wait a second, this...’
“Oh dear, not again, huh~”
I caught Big Sejin as she passed.
“Hey.”
“Yeah?”
“This is almost exactly what we predicted.”
“...”
Big Sejin sent a private message to Gold 2.
[Heeseung, is this you?]
She was checking the bait.
Soon a reply came.
[Lol yes? I just gave him the courage.]
“...”
You can feel he doesn’t want to debut with that lunatic. I guess he learned his lesson during this shoot.
“Amazing.”
Big Sejin and I shared a wry laugh. Clearly, Gold 2 had egged him on the moment a dropout reached out.
“Wow... how did all the bait land so perfectly on him?”
“He was excited, anxious, arrogant.”
“Right, spot on diagnosis~”
Big Sejin and I high-fived.
“Oh—Ah-hyun’s here too!”
“Hey, you two?”
Big Sejin opened the door and high-fived Seon Ah-hyun, who looked puzzled.
“Ah-hyun, big news—the bad guy lost first place, right?”
“Hmm?”
Seon Ah-hyun glanced at my screen, then nodded dazedly.
“Oh... I see. But I thought you were cautious...”
“People grow into their roles.”
“Right. And it really seems like he never intended to be an idol?”
“Uh... yeah...?”
Seon Ah-hyun tensed at Big Sejin’s casual addition, then swallowed and spoke with resolve.
“You know...”
“Hm?”
“Actually, I... I was the same. I didn’t enter because I had to debut as an idol... I just wanted to keep dancing.”
“...?”
I remembered how vaguely she’d answered when explaining her reason for joining Idol Corporation at the start.
...She must’ve felt her motive was impure and couldn’t say it outright.
“Everyone was serious—I felt I wasn’t. But now... I just wanted to say how precious and fun this is.”
“...”
I watched Seon Ah-hyun for a moment, then shook my head.
“No.”
“...!”
“I just got cast and found it fun. You don’t have to think too much about it.”
If not for the fatal debuff, I would never have entered this field. I rubbed the back of my neck.
“You were serious enough. You worked hard.”
“...”
Seon Ah-hyun bowed and nodded, lips sealed. Big Sejin smiled.
“Right—if someone works as hard as Ah-hyun, then people who came from other fields should quit, what?”
“What?”
“We’re talking about Ah-hyun~”
Bae Sejin, who’d caught that herself applied, called from across the living room. Big Sejin defused the moment with ease.
Then she patted Seon Ah-hyun on the back.
“We’re just happy we got a cooler group because Ah-hyun joined, right, Mundae?”
“Right.”
“...Mm.”
Seon Ah-hyun nodded repeatedly, sniffing a few times but fighting back tears.
“You did well.”
She’d finally shed the burden she never needed.
We had schedules the next day but lingered late, drinking beer lightly and reminiscing about Idol Corporation.
And from then on, we decided to stop caring about Cha Seodam.
After all, we’d gotten all the bait and seen the show.
‘No need to worry anymore.’
Seon Ah-hyun won’t be affected by him again.
After the commotion, early May brought noticeably warmer weather.
“Sigh.”
I was jogging at dawn on the apartment complex’s walking trail, avoiding people and sunlight.
A bit foggy, but fine for moving. Actually better—it hides me from others.
‘I can hear a dog barking far off—looks like someone else is out walking.’
I usually worked out indoors but thought I’d change it up for once.
‘When I have time, I should bulk up some more.’
Because when we release the next album...
—Woof!
“...?”
The distant barking suddenly grew close, and a dog wearing a harness burst through the fog at my feet.
“...!”
Wait.
I know this dog’s face.
“Kong, wait.”
