'Soo-Yon sshi.'
I looked up from my book. It was our manager, Ahn Yang ahjusshi.
'You're up on stage in fifteen minutes,' he informed me as he sat down on a chair.
'Thank you,' I said with a smile, nodding at him and returned to reading. My hairstylist, Mina noona, was working on my hair.
'Your hair sure did grow fast,' she commented. 'Good. I can curl is properly.'
'I did miss my bangs at the army,' I joked.
'But seriously Soo-Yon ah. You look even younger after your discharge,' Mina complimented.
'So this means I'm still a child?' I teased her.
'Song Soo-Yon is known for his youthful looks,' Manager Ahn said from the back. 'Oh Soo-Yon ah. I just remembered. The new fashion designer is coming in today.'
'Is she good?' I asked.
'She is. I just hope Cheng doesn't try to get in her pants and then dump her like he did with the last one,' he lamented.
'We can only hope,' I sighed. 'Where is he anyway?'
'Off to an outdoor CF shoot. He'll be back for tonight's dinner. By the way, did you two watch D3's interview last week?'
'Yes,' I said casually. 'We did.'
'How will you respond to it?' Manager Ahn asked. I turned to face him.
'It was a nice gesture from our ex-members. We don't need to react to it.'
'Gesture?' Manager Ahn scoffed. 'Taewon took a jab at you! You know how he is. Fans might get fooled but we know he was making fun of us.'
I knew that better than anyone. His actions didn't irritate me but it did raise some concerns.
'Manager Ahn,' I said. 'Their lives and our lives are different now. Since both of our bands are in the same industry, the least we can do is maintain a standard of professionalism. If we keep throwing mud at each other and react to everything, then we really don't deserve to be here. Our work is to entertain people. They'll do it their way and we'll do it our way.'
'Does Cheng share this sentiment of yours?'
I thought for a bit before carefully choosing my words.
'Cheng will do what's right for our team,' I said firmly. 'He might not share my sentiments, but I know he'll never do anything to harm our image. I have that much faith in him.'
Manager Ahn looked at me with concern. 'No wonder you are the leader of TNT,' he said quietly.