In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

The video showcased a performance by a quintet.

There, unfamiliar singers under the name ‘New Black’ were performing a song I knew well.

“Huh…?”

Americans watching the video were intrigued.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

It was the OST of a famous musical movie that had recently taken the US by storm.

And the voices of the singers were familiar.

“It’s identical to the one on the radio.”

Soon, viewers realized that the original artists of the song were the quintet in the video.

Their appearance was unexpected, yet refreshing.

Even through subpar speakers or earphones, the song’s resonance was profound.

The comment section was filled with praise.

“I don’t know who this singer is, but they’ve certainly made my heart race.”

“The harmony of these five voices is truly beautiful.”

“Wow. These actors sing even better than some professional singers.”

┕They are singers, you fool.

“I really love this song!!! :D”

“What?? The voices of North Guys were these people??? I had no idea.”

“The media needs to shine a light on ‘Thousand Dreams’ instead of ‘Falling Stars.’ How can nobody know the original artists of this famous song?”

“First watch: It’s North Guys! / After watching: Okay, New Black. Noted.”

“Fun fact: The person on the far left is the composer of this song! + Thanks for the like, love you New Black!!”

“So who are these guys, nerds? The only New Black I know is from a prison drama.”

Clearly, they were newcomers, yet comments in English shouted ‘New Black!’ everywhere.

A user with a thumbnail of an unfamiliar flag split in red and blue explained.

“New Black. They might not be well-known in the US, but they’re a hugely famous K-pop boy band in Korea.”

That’s when it clicked for everyone.

K-pop.

A genre known to many but heard by few.

Those who had seen the ‘Thousand Dreams’ performance only knew of other performances uploaded by Korean music cafes.

Only a few had clicked out of curiosity on a title stage video, but their interest didn’t last long.

Most didn’t show much enthusiasm or interest in New Black’s other performance videos.

However…

“What is this place?”

Those who followed the algorithm of MyTube videos discovered something intriguing.

Playlists titled ‘New Black TV’ and ‘New Black TV2.’

“The piano covers are really good.”

The leader of New Black had uploaded videos of album tracks transformed into piano pieces as a hobby.

Even the sheet music was provided for free.

The piano melodies were so soft and fluffy they could be used for ASMR.

“Today, I’m a chef…?”

There were videos of someone introducing recipes for famous Korean dishes while cooking, wearing an apron.

“Leeks? A vlog about growing leeks?”

A handsome man with a gym-goer’s build was recording a vlog, laughing heartily as he documented the growth of leeks.

“Tips for organizing…?”

Someone with a pale face was showing off a clever way to fold socks in front of an open storage cabinet.

Viewers unknowingly bookmarked these videos to watch later.

“Korean History 69 Points Overcoming Project Day 1? Why is there only Day 1?”

Videos of someone studying at a desk with a self-cam.

The likable neat appearance and focused expression made it hard to look away.

Every two weeks, a new video would be uploaded with the title ‘Starting from Day 1,’ showing someone studying diligently.

One minute in, they’d exclaim ‘I give up!’ with a bright smile, or after two minutes, ‘Wow! Big sister called!’ and give up.

Yet, with each new ‘Day 1’ video, the duration would increase.

“…”

As they were mesmerized by these videos.

American MyTube users blinked in wonder at how they ended up here and hit the subscribe button.

“It’s like a variety channel.”

There was so much content it seemed like they prepared everything, not knowing what you might like.

They had heard it was a K-pop boy band.

But American boy bands seemed quite different from those in Korea.

“Do singers in Korea not earn much?”

A truly famous singer should be able to live off album and song revenues alone.

The pity for them having to resort to side jobs was palpable.

Yet, watching New Black’s MyTube also felt strangely familiar.

“Just like reality stars.”

It reminded them of families in the US who became famous by turning their daily lives into reality shows.

The familial atmosphere, the compulsion to keep watching, though it was different because even without any drama, the daily lives of these five were somehow entertaining. 𝑅

As people smiled warmly at a video of someone riding a unicycle with arms wide open.

The viewership for New Black’s stage videos surged.

And soon, the news spread to Korea.

[New Black’s Stage Receiving Rave Reactions in the US]

Screenshots of MyTube comments and community threads were shared along with video links across various communities.

“The song is so goodㅠㅠ It’s my favorite.”

“I get this weird sense of pride when I hear them talk in English. You can tell the audience loves it.”

“Do they have any dark past or mistakes? I want to be prepared before I dive in.”

“Nope. Not everything New Black does is strange. As a fan, I’d say about six out of ten.”

“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ That’s 60% though.”

“Amazingㅋㅋ They really do live performances well.”

“It’s weird seeing them between Rupert Dean and Bella Pageㅋㅋ It looks like a compo

While most felt a sense of pride and enjoyed the quality of the live performances.

There were also those who were critical.

“The fans are working hard just because the MyTube views went up a bit.”

“I’d understand if it was ‘Falling Star’; honestly, that song is only famous in Koreaㅋㅋ No one in my neighborhood in the US knows it.”

“Honestly, the Billboard chart is like the Mango 100 in Korea.”

“Again with the hype, huh? LOL”

“In a few days, no one will remember anyway~ haha”

Despite New Black’s low number of detractors, thanks to their steadily built popularity from various variety shows, the number of critics seemed to grow in proportion to their fame.

When they invaded the comment section filled with admiration and praise for the song…

“Woahhhh!”

“That was New Black for you!”

In the minds of viewers across America, the final words of the performance lingered.

The name of the artist introduced amidst the applause, while still immersed in the afterglow of ‘Thousand Dreams,’ seemed like it would be remembered for quite some time.

Having completed our free schedule, we dragged our weary bodies into the vehicle.

“Ugh, my whole body aches…”

“Goodness. You need to get used to playing too. It’s been a while, and even this feels exhausting.”

We all nodded in agreement with the youngest member’s words.

Having worked non-stop, even playing felt tiring these days.

“Alright, clockwise.”

Following my lead, my younger brothers raised their hands to massage the shoulders of the member next to them in a clockwise direction.

“Counterclockwise.”

This time, we massaged each other’s shoulders in the opposite direction.

We carefully organized the shopping bags and souvenir boxes we were holding and stretched our bodies.

As we drove along the coastal road, the sunset painted the sea a deep red in the distance.

Enjoying the breeze coming through the car window, Rihyuk, who was browsing on his smartphone, said,

“I found in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs data that there are almost 600,000 Koreans living in LA.”

“Wow…”

“That’s about the same as the population of Jeju Island.”

“No wonder.”

We all nodded in understanding.

“Every time we walked down the street, Koreans would pop up out of nowhere.”

“In Korea, we blend in with everyone else, but here, we stand out because it’s a foreign country.”

Given that the resident population was that large, adding tourists to the mix meant we couldn’t go unnoticed.

It was a moment when our morning joke, ‘No one will recognize us. Hehehe,’ felt foolish.

Gazing at the distant sea, I turned and asked,

“So, does your mother’s house also happen to be in an area with a lot of Koreans?”

“My mom’s place?”

Rihyuk shook his head.

“It used to be, but I heard from Ye-in that she moved.”

“Do you know where?”

“It’s my first time visiting the neighborhood too.”

We were currently on our way to Rihyuk’s mother’s house for dinner.

She had invited us over for a meal, and we wanted to visit at the most leisurely time possible, so we scheduled it for the last day.

Squinting at the nearby signs, the guy said,

“Still, if it’s in this direction, it should be a decent neighborhood. Probably.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“The place I lived in when I was younger was a bit rough…”

The youngest, who was taking selfies with the sunset, asked,

“Hyung, so you only lived in the States when you were a baby?”

“Until the lower grades of elementary school?”

“That’s why the native speaker teacher said you had good pronunciation but used baby words.”

“…”

Rihyuk, dressed up to meet a family member, couldn’t tease the youngest.

Trembling with frustration, Rihyuk said,

“Well, anyway, the neighborhood I lived in back then wasn’t great. Neither were the kids at school.”

His expression darkened slightly, suggesting those weren’t fond memories.

“Mom was too busy working to pay much attention to me.”

“Did someone bully you?”

“Well, a bit. It’s obvious. I was on the smaller side.”

I thought about whether that was why he came to Korea.

“I was really marked at school.”

“…?”

“Whenever there were bullies, I’d give them a piece of my mind. But it seems they were mentally fragile; just a few words and they’d run off crying.”

“Ah.”

I smiled warmly at the unexpected turn of events.

“I didn’t swear or say anything bad. I just logically pointed out why they were wrong, and the school called my mom.”

“…I see.”

“But Mom never came to school. She was too busy.”

It seemed that one thing led to another, and he ended up in Korea.

Rihyuk ran his hand through his hair and turned his gaze towards the distant sunset.

“Anyway, when such things happened in the States, I usually called. But in Korea, when I called, they thought I was having a hard time. So, the calls became less frequent.”

“Why?”

“I had to take care of Ye-in, and it’s tough making money alone in the States. If I called, it might be a burden.”

“Hmm…”

I couldn’t quite empathize with his way of thinking, but it seemed like Rihyuk’s own form of consideration.

At least that cleared up why he didn’t know his mother’s address well.

Perhaps it was because we were in LA, or maybe because we listened attentively, but Rihyuk kept unraveling his stories.

“It seems much better than before, though.”

“Really? That’s good.”

He smiled contentedly.

“When I video call with Ye-in or see the pictures of the house she sent via messenger, it does seem much improved.”

“Wow…”

“I heard they moved to this house not long ago. It’s probably not much different from the previous one…”

Rihyuk paused mid-sentence.

Then, with a bewildered look, he glanced around at our faces and tilted his head.

“What’s wrong?”

“About the neighborhood where your mother lives.”

“Yes.”

“Is this the place?”

“…Yes?”

“Look at the houses around us, Ryuk.”

Before I knew it, the sky had turned a deep navy blue.

The houses in the neighborhood we were passing through were all impressively grand.

Even by Korean standards, this was an incredibly affluent area.

Our youngest, awestruck, exclaimed, “Wow!”

“…No, this can’t be right.”

Ryuk muttered to himself, gazing outside.

Meanwhile, our car delved deeper into the heart of the neighborhood.

We had passed the grand houses when a relatively modest mansion with a swimming pool caught our eye.

Shudder—

We blinked in surprise as the car came to a stop.

“Hey, Ryuk. Is that a gate?”

A large iron gate, like something out of a mafia boss’s residence in a movie, blocked our path.

Minki, who had been dozing off with earphones in the passenger seat, suddenly opened his eyes wide.

We all wore stunned expressions.

“What’s this all about?”

“Look at Woojoo, he’s so flustered he’s speaking in dialect.”

“No, but the house is… what…”

Outside was a house surrounded by a tall wall, its interior hidden from view.

Then, with a beep, the main gate slowly opened, and our car entered.

“Wow…”

A fountain softly lit by ambient lighting.

As the car moved along the driveway, we saw beautifully manicured lawns and flower beds.

But the most striking feature was the imposing three-story mansion.

“…”

Ryuk’s mother and his lively younger sister, Yaein, greeted us at the entrance.

As the car approached, I asked, “What did you say your mother does?”

“She started a clothing business…”

“It doesn’t seem like just any clothing business, does it?”

“…”

Ryuk was at a loss for words, and we couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“No, this can’t be happening…”

We chuckled at Ryuk, who looked as if he was questioning his entire existence up to this point.

Meanwhile, our youngest had been staring into space with a sage-like expression.

“You all see how important communication is… Aaack!”

Ryuk lunged at us.

“This is real! Like adding fuel to the fire…!”

“The fire was started by you, brother! Aaack!”

“Don’t speak the truth!”

Junghyun, who had been nodding in agreement, got slapped on the back by Bizu.

Amidst the chaos, I scratched the back of my head.

“Hello, ma’am!”

“Hello.”

I greeted her with a bright smile and extended my hand. We shook hands gently and finished our greetings.

“It’s nice to see you again since the concert. We’ve brought a gift for you…”

At my signal, Ryuk awkwardly stepped forward and handed over an envelope containing the gift.

His mother carefully accepted the envelope.

“Thank you.”

“Yes.”

“…”

“…”

It was the most awkward conversation in the world.

As she turned to lead us inside, she said, “Manager, please come in too.”

“No, I have other plans. I’ll just come back later to pick up the kids.”

We waved goodbye to the manager, who had expressed his reluctance to join from the start.

Then, with a bewildered look, the driver left with him.

“Come in.”

Following her gentle voice, we entered and discovered a whole new world.

“Wow…”

“It’s like Hogwarts. Brother, Hogwarts. It’s so… what’s the word? Old-fashioned.”

“I’ve never seen you so amazed before.”

“Wow. Did you see that?”

Our youngest was marveling at the paintings on the walls and various jars and ornaments.

Bizu and Junghyun were equally impressed.

I also took mental notes of the mansion’s interior, thinking about how I might build a house for Madam Kim Deoksoon someday.

As we looked around, we turned our attention to Ryuk.

“Are you an idiot?”

“That one is an idiot.”

“A real idiot.”

His ears turned red as he trembled with anger.

Soon, a large cover photo from an economic magazine caught our eye.

His mother, dressed in a suit, stood with an elegant posture, and the name ‘Sharon Kim’ was displayed alongside the title of CEO of a clothing company.

-Well, I heard she was in the clothing business…

I looked at Ryuk again, about to speak, then shook my head.

“This is the dining room.”

Ryuk’s sister introduced the dining room with a flourish.

We gathered around a round table that fostered a family atmosphere.

The private chef served the appetizers, and Ryuk’s mother smiled.

“Thank you, Rick.”

“Enjoy your meal.”

We all said, “Thank you!” and smiled.

I nibbled on the appetizers, taking in my surroundings.

“Wow, this house is incredibly fancy.”

“Isn’t it? I’ve been wondering if I paid too much for it.”

“Yes. It’s really cool.”

The meal proceeded in a surprisingly relaxed atmosphere.

“Ma’am, the food is really delicious. It’s the best I’ve had in my 20 years.”

“It’s so tasty.”

“Can I work here by any chance?”

Jung-hyun’s request, with his eyes glistening with hope, made us all burst into laughter.

The mother wasn’t much of a talker, but we made up for it with our chatter.

“So, you’re in the clothing business?”

“Yes, I’ve recently expanded quite a bit. The sales figures are good too.”

I wondered if living in America for so long had made her forget Korean, but she spoke it very well.

“There aren’t many fields for me to enter into business in this country.”

Hearing the name, it seemed to be a clothing company with branches all over America.

A cautious search revealed many economic articles about the mother who had rapidly built up the business.

And there was someone who knew less about these circumstances than we did.

“You sell clothes, right…”

“Hm? Did I say something different?”

“No.”

Lee-hyuk fiddled with his fork, a subtle expression on his face.

The mother, watching him, flicked her lips and then turned her gaze towards us.

“Did you do well in America?”

“Yes.”

“I heard you all sang very well.”

“Ah. Yes.”

“Of course, I saw the videos through Ye-in.”

I wondered why she was talking to the air.

Then I saw someone next to me, blushing and looking into the air just like the mother, and I closed my mouth.

So we too looked into the air and replied.

“Thank you.”

“Sure.”

Then we returned to the main course and continued our meal.

As I listened to the sound of knives and forks clinking against the plates, the mother looked around at us as if struck by a sudden thought.

“It seems we didn’t have time to talk the last time we met.”

“Yes. We were really disappointed too.”

“It’s different, talking face to face like this.”

I listened intently to her words.

“Since we’ve only communicated through emails… you’re a bit different from what I imagined.”

Our forks paused mid-air.

“Does Lee-hyuk write about us in his emails?”

“He sent quite a few.”

“I received a lot too.”

Our faces lit up with interest at the mother and daughter’s response.

“Oh, so you’ve been talking about us.”

“Aren’t you all curious when the lobster season is?”

While Lee-hyuk squirmed, trying to change the subject, the mother, deep in thought, said,

“I’ve always heard about you through emails and wanted to meet you in person. Especially Woojoo.”

“Me?”

“Whoever made such a good first impression…”

“Pfft!”

Lee-hyuk and I both choked at the same time.