After their concert in New York, KK toured Los Angeles and San Francisco. There were no emergencies like the terrorist threat before their first performance, but unexpected events, big and small, happened in each performance.
There were times where more people came than expected so not everyone was able to enter the venue, and times when a fan got overzealous during the concert and started having difficulty breathing.
Since there were a lot of outdoor concerts, the weather also became a variable.
The concerts they did in the rain reminded them of the concert they did in Korea at TongYoung.
Situations they didn’t expect, of course, included a lot of surprisingly good incidents too.
When they received a fan’s story that he could not go to KK’s performance due to his illness, the V TV production team, along with KK, planned an event for the fan.
They performed in the garden of a hospital in San Francisco.
This allowed the hospitalized fan to watch the performance through the window, and KK members even made a surprise visit to the fan’s room.
As news of it was reported through various media, praise for KK poured out once again.
For the fans as well as for KK, it was a very meaningful, deeply touching time.
The process of these concerts were captured in detail through a camera.
On V TV’s side, the number of episodes for the broadcast, which was expected to be 8, was increased to 10.
Eight episodes were not enough to capture the performance and preparation process intensively. The more they filmed, the more that the PD of ‘COME HERE’ reached the conclusion that they couldn’t omit a single person’s story because the members’ individual charm was so strong.
A lot definitely had happened in the span of almost one month.
In America, KK’s popularity was as hot as an iron pan. It was not a brief interest, but a heat that would not cool down for a long time.
Now, anyone who engaged in social media in America knew KK. It meant that if you knew LIL or Lady Nana, you would at least know KK’s name.
They were really looking forward to the reaction that would follow once ‘COME HERE’ officially aired.
Like that, the last day of filming as well as the final concert was tomorrow.
The final concert venue was in Las Vegas.
The city, which is not only flashy but also dazzling, was worthy of marking the grand finale of KK’s American guerilla performance.
“This is the largest casino in Las Vegas.”
At the words of the local Korean guide, who was in charge of translating as well as guiding them throughout Las Vegas, the members looked around, their jaws dropped.
The city itself was dazzling, but the biggest casino in such a city brought them to tears.
“Wow…”
“I can’t believe we’re at a casino. It’s ok for us to try gambling, right?”
“Hey, you’re not going to become a gambling addict are you?”
“I want to try it too…”
The guide smiled and responded to the members clamoring remarks.
“You can try the slot machine, that’s it. Just for fun.”
At the guide’s words, all of the members checked the cash in their wallets.
Their Las Vegas performance was just around the corner, the members seemed to have adjusted quite a bit to life in America.
It wasn’t easy moving around in a large continental city, being on the road and on top of that performing, but the members were trying to enjoy this time in their own way.
Manager Oh Baek Ho and the officials were also well aware of the members’ hardships, so they tried to be considerate of the members by giving them at least a day to rest or explore tourist attractions instead of rehearsals whenever they moved locations.
“Oh…I have about $50. I’m gonna go try it!”
Excited, Ahn Hyung Seo went inside the casino.
The guide and the members also followed behind Ahn Hyung Seo and headed towards the area that had rows and rows of slot machines.
In the back, two bodyguards followed the members at a certain distance so that they would not be uncomfortable.
Of course, since there were numerous people at the casino, there were those among them who recognized the KK members.
However, the bodyguards in the back were clearly visible and everyone was more immersed in the games than watching celebrities, so the KK members were able to move relatively freely.
Kim Won, the only one who had experience visiting casinos, sat down and operated the slot machine. The members planned to watch Kim Won do it first before trying it for themselves.
Anticipating hitting the jackpot, everyone stared intently at the spinning slot machine screen with excited eyes.
“What the······.”
The result, of course, was a ‘bust’.
When Kim Won muttered in a disappointed tone, Suk Ji Hoon sat next to him and said,
“They say there’s something called beginner’s luck, so I’ll give it a try.”
“There’s six of us, I’m sure at least one of us will win something!”
Suk Ji Hoon said in reply to Ahn Hyung Seo’s words. Ahn Hyung Seo raised his eyebrows. Anyways, the other members also started taking a seat one by one.
They couldn’t sit in a line because there were quite a lot of people, so they found seats as close as possible. The guide, probably concerned about Ahn Hyung Seo the most, stood behind him.
Do Wook, who had also been in the back, was looking for a seat to try at least once. An old man with gray hair was getting up from the machine right across.
It was when Do Wook sat down and saw the old man leaving.
‘I guess I’ll sit over there…’
Sitting down, Do Wook looked at the old man as he left.
The space itself was large, but because there were so many people coming and going, people often bumped into each other.
However, there was definitely something unnatural about the movement of the young guy who just bumped into that old man.
The young man said, “Sorry,” and tried to pass by casually. Do Wook jumped out of his seat.
Do Wook looked back at the bodyguards behind him.
When Do Wook suddenly got up, one of the bodyguards noticed his movement and made eye contact with him.
“…Excuse me!!”
Do Wook pointed to the young man and yelled urgently.
At Do Wook’s yelling, the people around him turned their gazes towards him. The old man also looked at Do Wook.
“Your wallet!”
At Do Wook’s yelling, the old man reflexively reached into the back pocket of his pants, where he had kept his wallet. As expected, there was nothing there.
His body moving before he could think, the bodyguard chased the young man Do Wook had pointed out.
The young man’s steps became quicker and quicker. Looking back, he noticed someone, whom anyone could tell was a bodyguard based on their physique and vibe despite wearing casual clothes, following him and started running.
The people in the hall turned to watch the sudden chase. Do Wook went back to the opposite side and headed towards the entrance.
In the face of the commotion, the casino’s internal personnel also jumped into action. Do Wook explained the situation quickly and concisely to the security guards at the entrance.
Just in time, the young man being chased by KK’s bodyguard was coming toward where Do Wook is.
The casino’s private bodyguards, who had the build of giants that you’d only see in movies, blocked the young man.
The young man briefly tried to run away, but to no avail. The police had already been called after checking the CCTV at the headquarters upstairs.
It happened in an instant.
The members, who had been excitedly playing the slot machines, as well as the old man who almost got his wallet stolen, watched the culprit get arrested with stunned expressions.
“Thank you.”
Meanwhile, Do Wook was thanking the bodyguard who had helped him.
“No problem.”
He was a Korean private security guard who had been protecting KK throughout their American concerts.
As this was a common occurrence, the casino was quickly taking care of it. They quickly handed over the pickpocket to the police, and were bowing their heads to the victim, apologizing for the negligence of the management.
One of them thanked Do Wook for helping out. He wanted to talk about compensating Do Wook, but Do Wook didn’t think he did that much so he shook his head.
“Uh…how did you know?”
When Do Wook, who only accepted light words of gratitude, came back, Park Tae Hyung asked. Park Tae Hyung’s gaze was full of genuine awe. Park Tae Hyung had been at the seat right next to Do Wook. He had also seen the large elderly man, but he simply thought of him as part of the crowd without noticing anything out of the ordinary.
“I just…happened to see it…”
The members’ expressions seemed to say watching this was more fascinating than watching the slot machines. Do wook replied in a slightly embarrassed tone because the members were looking at him with such expressions.
To make the right judgments, Do Wook had always had a habit of always being on the ball, particularly observing people closely. With excellent physical ability on top of that, he had gotten to the level of being able to catch pickpockets.
Of course, the pickpocket that was caught today wasn’t a veteran, which also helped make it possible.
The elderly Caucasian man, dressed in a shabby hat and sneakers, expressed his gratitude with a wink. Do Wook, who willingly accepted the gesture of thanks, left to enjoy the slot machines with the members again.
The elderly man was looking at Do Wook from behind, squinting his eyes.
“That Asian man who helped me…by any chance…”
Uncertain, the elderly man muttered. The casino manager, who was standing next to him, replied, surprised by the response. The manager had been walking on eggshells until moments ago, concerned that he might be upset about almost getting pickpocketed.
“Martin, do you also know who he is?”
His name was Martin.
He wasn’t a VIP at the casino since he didn’t spend too much, but about once a year he would come to Las Vegas for extended periods of time and enjoy some light games.
Of course there was a different reason that the manager knew him.
“No, I don’t know who that is. He has an extraordinarily good physique so I was wondering if he’s a celebrity. Are you familiar with celebrities from Asia…?
“Yes, he’s a member of an international boyband. Called KK…”
“Ah! KK? I’ve heard of them before! Their music video left a deep impression…You’re saying he’s a member of that group?”
“Yes. It’s truly surprising. To think that such a star even helped you, Martin.”
“Yeah. It’s surprising. Like a ‘hero’ in a movie.”
The manager’s eyes shone with interest. It was the manager’s first time having a conversation with Martin, and it was a great honor.
“Like one of the characters you created, right?”
The wrinkles around Martin’s lips curved upwards..
***
After the ‘Life Song’ broadcast ended.
The female idol groups that debuted today were on the trending searches on a Korean internet portal site,
1 Cancellation due to rain
2 LG Twins
3 Young Women
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7 Our Time
8 Life Song Rerun
9 Da Hye
10 Valentine
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.
.
‘Young Women’ was ranked higher than ‘Valentine’. Immediately after the performance was over, the trending searches suddenly soared over Valentine receiving special treatment for stage time despite being a rookie, but ultimately, what became more of an issue was Young Women’s performance.
It was just as President Jung Hye Sung said. The unexpected appearance of a talented rookie was a refreshing shock to the viewers.
Compared to idols from large agencies that they’d seen before, Young Women had a completely different vibe.
They weren’t manufactured into standards, which gave them more natural faces and expressions and untainted movements, including clearly visible sweat on their forehead, that showed that they were giving it their all.
At the same time, the high-quality songs and outfits were as good as any large agency. Solid singing skills and group choreography.
Even if the performance quality was equally high, ‘desperation’ and ‘passion’ for performing were bound to be felt even outside the TV.
As soon as the performance was over, many comments were posted on the Internet, such as ‘Who is Young Women, which agency is it, I was surprised,” etc.
Furthermore, when it was time to announce the first place and all the cast members were on stage, the youngest member Da Hye’s watery eyes and a single tear were shown for about 2 seconds, which caused a tremendous ripple effect.
It was enough to steal the hearts of both men and women.
It was an unusual feeling. Just this morning they weren’t ranked on the music charts, but now they made it into the top 100.
It was just a one-time performance, but because they learned something, anyone who watched the broadcast could have this thought. It was the thought that ‘Young Women’ might go beyond the limits of a small/medium-sized agency, like a second KK.
“It’s called Hye Sung Entertainment…It’s a company that President Jung Hye Sung, who used to work at Chul Won, established. Also…”
“Spit it out.”
The voice of Director Seo Joong Won, who was debriefing the secretary, rang throughout the Director’s Office.
“There seem to be rumors that KK’s Kang Do Wook invested there…”
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