UAI Chapter 29

After Cheolhwan left, that afternoon, Hajin was in his room on the phone with someone.

“Yes, Auntie. Have you been well? Yes, Sejin’s doing well too. Did you happen to think about what I asked the other day? Ah... I see. That’s unfortunate. Yes, yes, I understand. Please stay healthy, and if we get the chance, let’s meet sometime. Okay, take care.”

Finishing the call, Hajin sighed and came out into the living room.

In the kitchen, the members were eating fruit and called out to Hajin.

“Hajin, come eat some fruit.”

“Okay.”

Hajin walked over to the kitchen and sat down at the table.

The B-One members and Sejin were gathered around the table eating fruit and sandwiches.

After giving a glass of milk to his nephew, who was eagerly eating his sandwich, Hajin also picked a Shine Muscat grape and popped it into his mouth.

“But can we even eat dinner after having a snack this late?”

An aunt, who had been looking after everything to make sure nothing was missing, asked with concern.

“I’ll only eat a little, don’t worry. I think we can eat dinner around seven or later.”

“Yeah, I’m only going to eat this too, and then I won’t eat anything else.”

“Alright. Sejin, just eat a little too. If you want to eat dinner later.”

“Mm~ Okay! But the stuff Grandma made is just so yummy~”

“Oh my~ You like what Grandma made?”

“You’re just too cute, honestly. I’ll make dinner taste even better later, so let’s just eat a little now, okay?”

“Yes!”

The aunt patted Sejin’s head and started tidying up the kitchen.

“By the way, Hajin, who were you on the phone with?”

Jaewon asked, only now remembering to ask.

“Oh, it was the caregiver auntie who looked after Sejin when he was in the hospital.”

“Why?”

“When Sejin was being discharged, I asked her if she’d be interested in babysitting him. She said she’d think about it, but just now she called to say it wouldn’t be possible.”

“Ah, that’s too bad. She seemed like a nice lady.”

“Right? Sejin also liked her a lot, so it would’ve been nice if she could’ve done it.”

“Why did she say no?”

“Apparently, even now her children tell her not to keep working as a caregiver, but she continues doing it just to keep busy. If she took care of Sejin, her schedule wouldn’t be fixed, and if we had to leave the house, she might have to stay 24 hours—which is a bit much for her. She probably doesn’t have the stamina, and her kids were firmly against it. She didn’t go into too much detail, but it sounds like her children were also worried about us being famous celebrities. They were concerned that if anything ever happened, it might become a big issue.”

Everyone fell into a heavy silence at Hajin’s explanation.

“Ha... It’s frustrating that because of a few bad examples, we’re treated this way too.”

“Exactly. It’s not like we go around abusing our power or anything...”

“There’s nothing we can do. As soon as people hear ‘celebrity,’ they form all kinds of prejudices.”

Sensing the mood had grown somber among the members, Hajin quickly put on a bright face and spoke up.

“Guys, it’s okay. It’s not like we’re going to be super busy anytime soon. We can always find a babysitter.”

At that, Jaewon nodded and said.

“Yeah. Once we renew our contracts, we’ll be preparing the new album and filming that parenting reality show,

so we probably won’t need a babysitter urgently for a while. Since it’s someone who’ll be looking after Sejin, let’s not rush it. We should take our time and find someone really good.”

“Exactly. I mean, it would be kind of weird to have a babysitter on a parenting show anyway. Let’s just think of it in a positive light.”

Joomin quickly chimed in in agreement.

As the members chatted, the aunt—who had been busy in the kitchen—spoke up.

“Goodness, if it’s urgent, I can watch him for a bit. A calm kid like Sejin? I could look after three of him! Hajin, seriously, you need to be really careful when choosing a babysitter. What if you rush and hire someone who hurts Sejin or does something shady to you guys? I live alone and I’ve known you for years now—if it gets urgent, I can stay here for a few days and take care of Sejin. So don’t rush. Take your time and find someone truly trustworthy.”

Hearing that, Hajin suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

Even though he’d made up his mind to raise Sejin alone after his sister and her husband passed so suddenly, it was still his first time raising a child, and it was naturally overwhelming and unfamiliar at times.

But every time, the members and the people around him offered help and support.

Feeling once again how lucky he was to be surrounded by such good people, Hajin spoke up.

“Auntie... Thank you so much for saying that. It really makes me feel a bit more at ease.”

“Aww, look at your red eyes! If you’re already crying over something like this, how are you going to raise a kid in this rough world? Pull yourself together and focus on raising Sejin well. I’ll help out however I can.”

Her voice was loud, like she was embarrassed by Hajin’s gratitude.

“Ahahaha! I’m not crying, don’t worry! Auntie, you know I’m always grateful, right?”

“Oh, come on now. I’m getting paid plenty for what I do. No need for all that ‘thank you’ stuff.”

Watching the exchange, the others smiled warmly and commented.

“Seriously, our auntie is such a tsundere.”

“Right? She’s got such a soft heart but always acts so tough. Hahaha.”

“Auntie, we’re always grateful too. Please keep looking after us!”

“Honestly, you feel like our real aunt now.You take better care of us than my own mom.”

Hearing that, the aunt got flustered and snapped.

“You punks! Zip it!”

“Ahahaha!”

“Haha...”

And just like that, they decided to take their time in finding a babysitter for Sejin.

The next morning, the members and Sejin were getting ready to head to the company.

After washing and dressing Sejin first, Hajin began getting himself ready.

Noticing this, Sejin came out into the living room.

As soon as he appeared, Bbokdol—who had been gnawing on a chew toy while lying on a cushion—ran over.

“Ddol-ah, I’m going out with the uncles later, so you need to watch the house well, okay?”

“Woof!”

“Yeah? You understand? Our Ddol is super smart.”

Sejin talked to Bbokdol while petting his belly as the dog lay on his back.

Just then, Joomin, who was coming out of his room after getting ready, approached and smiled at the sight.

“Sejin, are you all ready?”

“Yup!”

“That was fast. So you were playing with Bbokdol while waiting?”

“Yeah.”

“There’ll be a lot of unfamiliar people at the company when you go with the uncles. Will you be okay?”

“Yup! I’m okay. I have my uncles with me!”

“Oh wow, you’re so brave. There’ll be a lot of new people, but they’re all kind, so make sure to greet them properly, okay?”

At Joomin’s words, Sejin nodded earnestly.

“Yup! I’ll be a social butterfly. I’ll go like this and say, ‘Hello!’”

He then pretended to bow with his hands at his belly like a proper greeting.

Joomin laughed and ruffled Sejin’s hair.

As they sat in the living room chatting, the other members began to gather, all ready to leave.

A moment later, Minsu called to say he had arrived at the parking lot.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Sejin, let’s get your shoes on.”

As everyone headed to the front door, Bbokdol followed them.

“Oh? Bbokdol, we’re going out.”

“Yeah, you stay here and watch the house, okay? You can be alone for a bit, right?”

The members tried to coax Bbokdol back into the living room, but Sejin chimed in.

“Uncles! I already made a deal with Ddol earlier. He promised to guard the house well all by himself!”

Everyone laughed at that.

“Haha, really?”

“So that’s what you were doing when you were talking with Bbokdol earlier?”

“Yup!”

“Alright then. Bbokdol, guard the house for us, okay?”

“And anyway, the auntie will be coming over soon,

so we don’t need to worry too much.”

“Alright, let’s get going.”

After saying goodbye to Bbokdol, Sejin and the B-One members took the elevator down to the underground parking lot.

Minsu, who had been waiting outside the car, quickly opened the door for them.

“Uncle! Hello!”

“Hi, Sejin! Hello, everyone.”

“Hey, good to see you.”

“Minsu! Hi!”

Once Hajin had buckled Sejin into the car seat, everyone got in, and the car departed.

About 30 minutes later, as they approached the company, they saw a group of people outside—clearly fans.

“Uncles, over there!”

Sejin pointed toward them excitedly.

“Ah, those are fans, Sejin.”

“Well… not all of them, to be honest.”

Sejin nodded, understanding the uncles’ reply.

‘Right… sasaengs aren’t real fans. B-One doesn’t get many of them, but even then it’s exhausting… I really wonder how the new idols these days manage.’

Lost in those thoughts, they soon arrived at the building’s underground parking.

Minsu pulled the car right up to the elevator and opened the doors remotely from the driver’s seat.

“Guys, go ahead first. I’ll park the car and join you soon.”

“Alright, thanks for the ride.”

“We’ll head up first then.”

After thanking Minsu, the members exited the vehicle.

They took the elevator up and got off on the 5th floor. As they walked through, company staff passing by greeted them.

“Oh! You’re here?”

“It’s been a while!”

“Hello! Have you been well?”

“We’re fine, thank you. Oh—Sejin’s here too? Hi, Sejin!”

“Aww~ he’s so cute!”

At first, people greeted B-One, but once they noticed Sejin, their eyes lit up with excitement.

In response, Sejin stepped forward and gave a formal bow.

“Hello! I’m Lee Sejin!”

His greeting set off a wave of delighted reactions from the staff.

“Kyaa! Sejin!”

“Oh my gosh! Hi there! Nice to meet you!”

“Sejin, do you want a snack?”

Soon, it was as if B-One had faded into the background, as all attention turned to Sejin.

Even more staff, hearing the commotion, came out of their offices to gather around and greet the little star.

“Wow~ Sejin is so adorable.”

“He should seriously be a celebrity. Should we draw up a contract right now?”

Any typical child might have burst into tears when surrounded by unfamiliar people, but Sejin greeted everyone confidently and happily accepted snacks.

He even posed for photos with anyone who asked.

Hajin and the B-One members could only laugh in disbelief at the scene.

“Wow. What is this? We’ve been completely sidelined.”

“Seriously…”

“I was worried earlier, asking Sejin if he’d be okay around strangers, but clearly there was nothing to worry about. Haha.”

“Really? The way he’s acting, he looks like a celeb at a fan meeting!”

“Told you—our Sejin is born to be in the spotlight.”

The noisy hallway finally settled when Cheolhwan, having come to see what all the fuss was about, stepped in.

“Okay, okay! Aren’t you all supposed to be working? Back to your desks!”

At his words, the staff reluctantly said their goodbyes to Sejin and started to disperse.

Cheolhwan shook his head in amusement, then addressed the members.

“Welcome. If you were here, why didn’t you just go straight to the office? What are you all doing out here?”

“Hey, it’s not like we planned this.”

“Exactly. We just got off the elevator and ran into some staff. Then everyone suddenly gathered to see Sejin and things got out of hand.”

“Anyway, the CEO’s waiting, so let’s head upstairs.”

Inside the office, Cheolhwan grabbed some documents and his phone, then pressed the elevator button to go up to the 9th floor, where the CEO’s office was.

After a short wait, the elevator arrived and the doors opened.

A person stepped out.

“Oh? Hello!”

The person who had just exited the elevator quickly bowed upon seeing Cheolhwan and the B-One members.

He was a handsome young man with light brown hair and a bright, gentle smile.

“Oh, Seunghwan. What brings you here?”

Cheolhwan asked.

“Ah! The team from Singer Division Team 2 called me in for a moment.”

“I see. Then you’d better get going.”

“Yes! I’ll be on my way. See you next time!”

The man, called Seunghwan, politely said goodbye and headed off to the 2nd team’s office.

Watching him go, Roy—who had been waiting with the group—urged the others toward the elevator.