Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols-Chapter 206: Audio-Visual Education

Won Chaehee’s long Friday shift was finally over.
She should have been cheering for that, but she didn’t have the energy. She was simply too worn out.
Years ago, she would have rejoiced at the arrival of Friday, anticipating a fantastic weekend.  Now, all she wanted was to lie down and sleep straight through the next 48 hours.
‘I need to engage in my fandom, but real life is getting in the way… Should I quit real life?’
Won Chaehee pondered the same question throughout her commute on the packed subway.  After arriving home, she soaked herself in a hot shower and lay down on her small, cozy bed to recharge.
She hadn’t logged into her fan account for days. Sure enough, the ‘See More Posts’ button greeted her as soon as she logged in.
She kept up with official news as a top priority. During her commute, she diligently watched stage videos and self-produced content, turning on her mobile data instead of using the unreliable subway Wi-Fi.
She had also held a streaming event with the help of a friend and saved all the pictures uploaded to Bubble Pop. Not to mention completing her photocard collection.
But she hadn’t been able to delve into anything else. Like watching Kim Iwol’s first drama, In My Office, which had been trending among Sparklers recently.
Her neglected timeline was filled with screenshots of Kim Iwol’s character, Do Younghwan, in a suit. Every single one was a masterpiece. He was a good clothes hanger, and with a well-tailored suit, he looked stunning.
However, dramas had long running times, and…
‘I don’t want to watch more office stuff after just getting home from work.’
…That was the problem.
She knew it was getting good reviews. Apparently, his performance as a hyper-realistic office worker was gaining attention for being far too real for a 21-year-old.
This was the issue. For Won Chaehee, a freshly off-work office worker, watching a hyperrealistic office drama was excessively cruel.
Why did Kim Iwol have to star in an office drama as an office worker? Couldn’t he have at least made a cameo appearance in a sitcom? Then she would only have to watch one episode.
‘Should I watch it or not…’
After much deliberation, Won Chaehee switched to her private account. A flood of pent-up, passionate reactions poured out.
≫ Do Younghwan, marry me!
Younghwan, just focus on work, I’ll take care of everything else
≫ How could you not fall for a taciturn but competent, sharply dressed, over 180cm tall, black-haired younger male junior with a sense of humor?
≫ Do Younghwan drawing graphs in real-time on webcel.gif
└ Did they put the keyboard shortcuts in the script?ㅋㅋㅋㅋ He’s practically a machine
└ The actor himself is a webcell master…ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ There’s even an ‘Iwol’s 10-Minute webcel Tutorial’ among his self-produced content
└ Why does that even exist in idol content?
≫ I burst out laughing whenever Do Younghwan appearsㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
He clearly has social skills, but you can tell he’s not suited for society
└ The kind of talent companies want, but he doesn’t want the company
“Ha…”
They say the one who loves more is the one who loses.
Won Chaehee picked up her tablet. And for the first time in a while, she opened her OTT streaming app.
* * *
The drama was quite good. It deserved its reputation among office workers as a drama that spoke for the lowest-ranking employees.
Honestly, in the first episode, she didn’t even notice Do Younghwan when he first appeared. Because Kim Iwol only showed his back.
His subdued hairstyle, clearly intended to avoid standing out, and his lackluster eyes, which contrasted sharply with his bright smile in his idol activities whenever he was in front of a camera, made him seem even more unfamiliar.
Do Younghwan began to gradually make his presence felt from the latter half of the first episode.
Do Younghwan perfectly setting the table when the team members had an emergency meeting after work due to a sudden change of team leader.
Do Younghwan stapling documents on the right side for the left-handed team member, Do Younghwan swiftly changing the webcell chart on the screen with a few keystrokes, Do Younghwan clearing his desk suspiciously neatly, Do Younghwan efficiently using dual monitors with a four-way split-screen…
It was clear: Do Younghwan was a scene-stealer. And he stole those precious moments like a phantom thief.
The scene where he advised Seon Guan, who was troubled by a conflict with their intellectual team leader, while refilling the copier paper, was as natural as could be seen in any office.
It was so realistic it made her want to gag. But it was precisely that realism that made it fascinating.
The part where Seon Guan’s seemingly eternal competence gradually disappeared as her romance with the intellectual team leader progressed was quite gripping.
『If you ask me to choose between love and work, I choose work.』
『….』
『So I can’t date you, Team Leader. I don’t want an office romance. I can’t do it. I want to keep working here.』
That’s right. Office romances aren’t something you can do half-heartedly.
No need to look far—just recently, a guy from the department next to Won Chaehee’s and a girl from the one next to that had dated, then broken up, and both ended up quitting the company in turn.
Even though it would eventually work out, Won Chaehee fully understood Seon Guan’s desire to avoid rumors.
Just as the emotional tension peaked, a familiar song began to play. A well-known voice quietly filled the background.
It was the second ending OST of In My Office, composed by Lee Cheonghyeon and sung by Jeong Seongbin.
‘I’ve already watched 7 episodes?’
Won Chaehee couldn’t believe her eyes. But the clock didn’t lie.
Jeong Seongbin sang, his voice enveloping the sound of rustling papers and keyboard taps as the bass line kicked in.
『If I open this door and go out
Will you and I
Walk the same path
Or turn our backs and walk away?
Do we smile when we meet
Because we’re happy?
Or because we want to be happy?
I look forward to the mornings
When I see you
But at night
I feel like I’m all alone』
As the song faded, the sound of heels clicking on a hard floor could be heard. Just listening to it brought to mind a gray, dark corner of an office hallway.
The screen zoomed in on the two people who had developed complicated feelings within the confines of the company.
‘The song is good too…’
Won Chaehee pressed ‘Continue Watching’ without hesitation.
After finishing it, she silently moved on to ‘In My Office Behind-the-Scenes Compilation’. There, she watched Kim Iwol with a cable tie in his mouth, diligently tying HDMI cables, Kim Iwol going around greeting every staff member, and Kim Iwol picking up trash on his way home from work.
About 7 hours later.
≫ Just finished watching In My Office…. I can’t keep these overwhelming feelings to myself, so I’m releasing these Iwol photos I’ve been saving. Please show lots of support and interest in Spark’s Kim Iwol and In My Office’s Do Younghwan. 🙂
└ Fanmeeting_QuizTime_Iwol(1).png Fanmeeting_QuizTime_Iwol(2).png
Fanmeeting_QuizTime_Iwol(3).png Fanmeeting_QuizTime_Iwol.gif
└ The oldest hyung embarrassed after his members’ contact names were revealed
└ ○○_Commuting_Iwol(Greeting).png ○○_Commuting_Iwol(FingerHeart).png
.
.
.
≫ Photocard giveaway event for those who provide proof of streaming In My Office’s ending theme, ‘Unspoken Words’, (Not limited to followers / Must prove streaming at least 100 times)
└ I’m thinking of a 3-piece set featuring Iwol, Seongbin, and Cheonghyeon! I’ll choose photos that are similar to the drama images and make photocards. I might also give a small number away to friends later
Won Chaehee, with tears in her eyes, released a massive amount of content from her drive. Next, she used her years of experience to edit screenshots of Do Younghwan.
Her weekend was definitely gone, but it was okay. Moments like these were exactly why Won Chaehee stayed a fan.
* * *
“You want to link the self-produced content with In My Office?”
At the sudden, dangerous proposal, I hurriedly checked the proposal document.
I already had enough self-promo points. I’d rather lose one than have another controversy about favoritism toward Kim Iwol blowing up because we aired more content centered on me.
Unaware of my feelings, the dedicated team members beamed.
“The response to In My Office has been really good among fans. UA hasn’t officially released any press releases or promotional materials yet, so it’d be great to release it just in time for when the variety show airs!”
Haha, you’re trying to bury me alive.
Since getting a dedicated team, the workload for major projects like comeback preparations had significantly decreased. The quick stabilization thanks to the dedicated team was possible because they only needed to slightly tweak things they already had experience with, like planning or showcases.
However, the idol fandom market had its complexities. Fans could easily feel fatigued of even the smallest things. It was understandable, in a way. Fans were already passionately supporting their idols on a daily basis.
If you ignored these unique dynamics and just applied the usual success formulas of mainstream artists focused on mass appeal, it would backfire. In other words, trying to capitalize on the In My Office hype could cause a backlash.
Since the goal was to raise Spark’s profile, I agreed with having the group casually comment on the drama to generate some online buzz. It would be even better if Lee Cheonghyeon and Jeong Seongbin shared some behind-the-scenes stories about the OST production.
However, we should avoid focusing too much on Kim Iwol. I was already busy trying to stop these guys from secretly messaging fans asking if they were watching In My Office.
So, for the first time in a while, I asked permission to crash the dedicated team’s meeting. The staff, who’d once seen me completely break down, generously gave me the floor and told me to say everything I wanted to.
After a peaceful discussion and healthy exchange of opinions, without me having a meltdown, the result was:
“Today, we, Spark, will be challenging ourselves to a 6-person debate!”
“Wow!”
Content that both fans who had and hadn’t seen the drama could enjoy.
Content where all members could share TMI according to their personalities, unrelated to the drama.
A full-fledged ‘debate self-produced content’ that only borrowed the topic of discussion from the drama, allowing for a level of promotion that didn’t cross the line.
‘I’m not sure if they’re assertive enough to actually make it a debate, though.’
The fun of a debate came from sticking to your opinion, undeterred by the opponent’s arguments.
Spark, on the other hand, was the type to readily accept the other person’s opinion if it made sense—to put it kindly, they were open-minded; to put it bluntly, they were spineless.
Would having these guys do a debate actually be entertaining? I was worried, but I decided to trust Lee Cheonghyeon’s tact and Choi Jeho’s illogical ramblings.
However, my worries were unfounded.
“No, how can you choose work over love?”
“You do know that’s a dangerous statement as an idol, right?”
“Hyung, that’s a very narrow-minded view. Do you think love is only about romantic relationships? Aren’t we working as idols to spread positive effects based on our love for humanity?”
…I had briefly forgotten that Spark had once gotten into a personality controversy just for being too direct with their words.