What, is there some kind of event? A flash mob by kids from a prep school or something?
Since the only thing she could imagine a bunch of boys in school uniforms doing together was something like that, the fansite master approached the scene, curiosity tugging at her.
I'll shine for you you you
I'll be your star ar ar
When she pushed through the crowd, she immediately realized they were filming a broadcast.
Dozens of boys, standing in a tight, well-shaped formation, were facing the camera as they performed a precisely rehearsed dance.
…Oh.
Behind the front wing formation, rows of boys were lined up in neat order, showing their group choreography while surrounded by cameras.
It was easy to tell they weren't regular students but idol trainees. Their choreography was far too polished for ordinary people—and more importantly—
…They're handsome.
Even if you rode Seoul's subway Line 2 ten times around the city, you'd be lucky to find even one person who looked like these boys. Yet here, among the formation, such overwhelming visuals were everywhere.
Her eyes naturally settled on the trainee standing at the very center, leading the others.
People around her were already whispering his name.
"Isn't that Kang Hyun-jin?"
"Kang Seok-ho and Yoon Hee-yeon's eldest son? Oh my god, I think it is! What's he doing here?"
"Wow, look at his dancing. He's really good."
The fansite master recognized Kang Hyun-jin too. He had appeared on a survival show years ago—back then he was still clearly a kid, but now he had the face of a full-grown adult.
What hadn't changed was the dazzling dance skills that had drawn so much praise back then. Even now, among the trainees with all sorts of different dance lines and abilities, he held his ground with heavy presence and undeniable skill.
He is good. Is he the center?
She watched Kang Hyun-jin with interest, then slowly shifted her gaze to examine the trainees in the wing formation one by one.
She wasn't sure what separated the boys in the back from the ones in the front, but she guessed the division was based on skill. The trainees forming the formation seemed slightly more competent than those behind them.
Kang Hyun-jin is the center of that group… so they must've divided them by rank? Definitely seems like a survival show.
Come to think of it, there had been rumors that A-Net was launching a new survival program. People in the fandom world had been whispering about it for months.
I thought it was going to be some small collaboration with one agency at best…
Judging from the number of trainees here, it clearly wasn't limited to a single company.
Bzzz—
Just as she was scanning the trainees with growing interest, a new message arrived from her buyer.
[Buyer: How far are you now?]
[Me: Ah I'm almost there]
Ugh, I should go.
She needed to sell the camera and shake off the last lingering attachment. She was about to send another message saying she was nearly there when she lifted her head, adjusting the paper bag holding the camera—
"…!"
Suddenly, she spotted one trainee at the edge of her vision.
…Who's that?
She stared blankly at him for a moment—then, almost as if pulled by something, she opened the paper bag, took out her camera, and turned it on.
The camera was empty now, without a single photo stored.
She raised it to her eye and framed the trainee in the viewfinder.
A trembling whisper escaped her lips before she even realized.
"Holy… are you kidding me?"
The face captured in her camera frame was nothing short of shocking.
A sharp, pale, slender face. Long, well-shaped arms and legs. A clean, refined impression overall—yet depending on his expression, he could look sharp and sensitive, or gentle and soft. A beautifully sculpted face.
And the instincts of Floyer's top-seed fansite master—a woman who had clung to choosing centers like a pine tree clings to its roots—were screaming at her.
That's the face of a center. No question.
She adjusted the focus to capture him more clearly. The trainee, dancing with neat and clean lines, was positioned at the very end of the wing formation. Because of that, he seemed half-hidden between the boys standing behind and the ones in front.
She slowly tracked his movements through the lens and pressed the shutter.
Then—
"…Huh?"
Through the camera lens, she met the trainee's eyes.
For a brief moment, his eyes widened—
"…Huh—?"
And then, a faint hint of a smile appeared on his face.
It vanished quickly, but with the instincts she had honed over four years as a fansite photographer, she captured that fleeting smile even while startled.
…What was that? What just happened?
With a dumbfounded expression, she looked again at the trainee beyond the lens. Now he was looking in another direction, finishing the very end of the choreography with the other boys.
Believe in me
Hold on to me
Feel me
As the song neared its climax, the trainees' dancing grew more intense. The boy's dance lines were clean, though he seemed slightly lacking in power—so he didn't stand out much among the other boys.
Yet to her eyes, among all the trainees wearing identical clothes, he alone seemed to shine—sparkling, as if illuminated.
Feeling that strange phenomenon, and with the experience of having gone through many idols before, she realized something with ease.
Look
Look straight
At your one and only idol!
She had, once again, been grabbed by the collar and dragged back into the idol world.
That night, after A-Net's ambitious flash-mob event concluded—
Entertainment communities—recently scattered by different fandoms—were now united and burning with excitement.
『[Singer/Entertainment] A-Net's new idol survival Design Your Idol flash mob fancam (gif)』
Design Your Idol guerilla flash mob fancam (wing formation focus)
Unauthorized reproduction and reposting prohibited.
Source credit required
-Another audition show?
-? Came in because it said A-Net + survival
-Is this all trainees??
-(link) Program info – Design Your Idol – FreeWiki
To summarize: It's an idol survival show where multiple agencies send their trainees. Apparently, during tomorrow's Music A broadcast, they'll have the official stage for the theme song. The concept is that viewers pick members with perfectly balanced abilities—and debut them as a group.
└ Ohhh so that's why it's called Design Your Idol
-Oh wow, multiple agencies? Feels like there's gonna be drama lol A-Net really knows how to make survival shows
└ Heard some of the agencies participating don't get along. Edit war incoming lol
└ Trainees' pride fights… should I start popping the popcorn?
-Do the big entertainment companies join too??
└ Yeah, apparently he's in that video? They say he's from Karma.
└ ??????? Karma?? What, did A-Net get some dirt on them? Why are they appearing???
└ Ah, I get it LOL I found him. You can feel the "I'm from Karma" aura just by looking at his face lolol
└ I'm curious how skilled he is… A trainee from that Karma—the one everyone says, once you fall for him, you only accumulate karma and can never escape… he wouldn't show up for nothing.
└ I heard there's a DIO kid too lol Some rapper who used to work in the underground. They'll probably set him up as a rival to the Karma trainee.
If they have Do Ji-hyuk, they've already succeeded at baiting everyone.
└ LOL I can already imagine the clickbait thumbnails made by MiTubers hahahaha
└ Who's Do Ji-hyuk??
└ He's the maknae of a failed group called Black Ocean lol About 3 years ago, one member committed a sex crime and another got into a huge sponsorship scandal. He was the only one who ran away, went silent, then escaped into the military.
└ Ah lol so he's resurfacing now that things have calmed down. Fair enough, I guess… It's just kinda wild that he pops out the moment things go quiet.
A-Net has been spreading rumors since half a year ago lol I guess they sharpened their knives to hit big. You can tell they put effort into visuals and skills. They definitely want some buzz. Did they think we'd just shut up and watch? Well, they were right. I'm watching the premiere live.
└ LOLLLLLLL so true
└ Honestly agreed—if they prepared this much, I feel like I've stumbled into a gold mine. The future of K-pop boy groups is bright.
That guy in the fourth row of the wing formation—the one with the tie—what are we supposed to do about that vibe?? Rolled-up sleeves + white shirt + tie combo is criminal.
└ Looks mixed??? His jawline screams Hollywood. Why is he in Korea? I don't know, but thank you.
Maybe because it was filmed raw, but the sound of their footsteps matching perfectly is insanely satisfying.
Are all the K-pop nomads gathering here or what LOL
└ Didn't even know this was happening; came because I heard rumors for real
└ Honestly, all the first-tier boy groups are in the military or in scandals, so tons of fans were about to leave the scene. Please give us new boysㅠ
Is it just me? Isn't the start the real killer point??
└ The way they all throw off their coats and step in—my kryptonite ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
└ Will they post outfit details later? I got sold on every coat they wore… are those their personal clothes??
This obvious hook + intense choreography is exactly my type… And the one in the very front performs it so well. That's Kang Hyun-jin, right???
└ Yup, Kang Hyun-jin!! He got eliminated from Catel 3 years ago, which was such a shameㅠ I hope he debuts this time.
So good, omg omg omg
Are the boys in the front better?
└ Yeah, looks like they divided formation by skill.
Makes sense the center feels so stable—he is from a survival show.
The boy at the far end of the right wing is literally filming a Pocari Sweat commercial by himself ㅠㅠ who is he..
└ His hair fluttering like that… genius idol acquired
└ Omg the smiling guy is over there
└ Smiling guy?? What's that?
LOL the boy in the back left who keeps smiling with his eyes—his job satisfaction must be through the roof LOL
└ Legit he looks excited by the crowd cheering, it makes me happy too
└ At the start he flung off his Bur*berry coat so boldly—he radiates pure extrovert energy. He'll be the next variety show idol for sure.
The front boys' faces together are a perfect blend, like 394802% stability. Did they divide formation by skill or face?
└ This is what idols should look like
└ 22222
Oh, the one right behind the center—his dance is insanely powerful and precise. Must've practiced like hell lol
└ The power's maybe a bit too much, but he's so good that it's fun to watch
└ I heard he's from DIO—trainee Yoo Chan-hee, ex-underground rap crew
Can someone mention Do Ji-hyuk's dance lines too… His dance lines are a crime… This is a refreshing concept song, why is he that sexy?? I want to imprison him in my country's jail..
└ Too late, Do Ji-hyuk is already serving a life sentence in my heart
I can't leave this thread LOL
└ I'm burying my bones here. Until trainee profiles drop, I'm not moving a step.
└ How many of these kids won't get to debut? ㅠ I'm gonna cry
You have to watch the video 7 times:
Once focusing on the center
Once focusing on the Pocari-smile boy in the far right back row
Once focusing on the job-satisfaction boy in the third row left wing
Once focusing on the power dancer right behind center
Once focusing on the tie guy in the fourth row right wing
Once focusing on the life-sentence sexy dancer
Once watching the whole thing with the audience reactions
└ LOLLLLLL they're so serious
└ LOL is this the Six Ministries of Joseon
Because it's shot raw, their charms stand out even more
I hope the broadcast airs soonㅜㅜ so more trainee info gets released
But why is the Pocari boy called "smile boy"??
└ He already got a fansite master lol She caught him smiling and posted a preview, so she nicknamed him "smile boy"ㅋㅋ His smile is insane. We don't even know his name yet and everyone's obsessed. Look:
「(Link) [XX0320] OO-dong Grand Park Guerilla Flash Mob #SmileBoy #Look」
#DesignYourIdol #DYOI #ANet #Look
「Hello.
This is "too want too have," documenting the brilliant record of the so-called Smile Boy, whose smile shines beautifully.
This is a preview from the #LookFlashMob guerilla promotion.
The edited version has also been finished earlier than expected and will be uploaded today.
Until Smile Boy's name is revealed, and until he achieves a successful debut, please give him lots of love and support.
Thank you.」
└ LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
└ A truly dedicated person appears
Wow I saw both the preview and the edited version—insane
└ The raw version was good but the edited one is basically magic
└ Seriously impressive. They erased every weird detail in the outfit and now he looks flawless. Truly, people's eyes see the same thing.
You can feel how the fansite master felt at the scene… and smile boy's face?? That smile?? Why does it make my heart skipㅠ
└ It's like running into your first love from ten years ago… What's with that soulful smile?
└ Wait—he looked straight at the camera and smiled like that??? So the fansite master met that smile through the lens???? Thinking about it that way, I totally get why she made a new account right away—who could wait for his name?
└ You can feel the affection… I hope trainee info drops soon so she can tag him properlyㅠ
The color grading brings out the trainee's charm so well. But I swear I've seen that editing style before.
└ Rumor says she's the former fansite master of Floyer's S.J?
└ Wow she shut down her old account and already switched sides lol Either way, thanks for the gorgeous previewㅠ
└ So what's Smile Boy's name?? Stop being slow, A-Netㅠ
Guys the broadcast is up! New thread let's go@@@@@@
└ Small spoiler from here: Smile Boy's name is Won Yu-ha (!KRM! 5-year trainee)