Minjae sat on the floor of his living room, hugging his knees as he clutched his phone tightly in both hands. The light from the phone illuminated his tired face. He had barely moved since the PR team left earlier that morning.
He was in a daze the whole ti. His heart won't stop racing. The weight of the rumors pressed on his chest, and it hasn't left since then.
It was Minjae's first issue. Even in his first life, he didn't encounter any issue as big as this one. It was new. It was a foreign thing.
And above it all, it felt horrible. Very, very horrible.
Minjae sighed. When he was scrolling on his phone, he saw the official post from Flex Entertainnt go live, he held his breath.
He refreshed the page once. Twice. Then again.
And the comnts started pouring in.
"They really posted proof."
"Okay, this just flipped the narrative. The guy's been through hell and still ca out kind."
"I feel so bad for judging too quickly."
"I'm so sorry."
"Wow. From orphanage to stardom, and he still stayed kind. That's strength."
"People really tried to cancel a man who just wanted to survive. Disgusting."
"Tsk. And that guy who used his mother? May he go to hell."
Minjae's lips tremb led.
He let out a shaky breath, and for the first ti in hours, his grip on his phone loosened. He placed it gently on the table beside him and leaned back against the couch, eyes blinking up at the ceiling.
Relief surged in his heart.
It wasn't over. He knew that. For sure, there would still be people who'd doubt him. Maybe even more rumors might follow.
He knew too well that the noise wouldn't vanish overnight.
But still, his side has been cleared. It was a good thing that Fle Entertainnt values its artists the most. They were quick to respond to the issue.
The fear that had been gripping him since dawn slowly disappeared. Minjae swallowed the tightness in his throat and exhaled through his nose.
"…Thank you," he whispered, not sure if he was thanking the company or the fans.
Minjae stayed seated on the floor, his arms now loosely wrapped around his knees. He glanced at his phone again, tempted to look at it.
And after a long mont of thinking, he gave in and picked it up. phone resting beside him on the carpet.
He glanced at it again, tempted.
And after a long mont, he gave in and picked it up.
The official statent from Flex Entertainnt had been out for nearly fifteen minutes already, and the response was overwhelming.
Just as the rumors, the statent also spread like wildfire, extinguishing any more rumors that may co.
Minjae scrolled through the replies slowly, letting the words sink into his brain.
"This is how you handle a scandal. It's transparent, respectful, and also backed with facts."
"Okay… I judged too fast. I'm sorry, Minjae."
"Imagine going through all of that and getting judgede. He deserves better than this ss."
Minjae breathed in deeply.
He kept scrolling through the comnts.
A fan had even posted a compilation thread: "Here's why Minjae is not what they said he was." — it included clips from past interviews, monts when he helped staff on set, and stories of fans sharing how polite and down-to-earth he was in real life.
But the deeper he went into the thread, so hate comnts also showed
"Convenient how he suddenly has all the proof ready, huh?"
"They're just doing damage control."
"Yeah, he looks sincere, but that's what actors are good at—acting."
"I don't trust entertainnt companies. It's all PR."
Minjae just sighed.
He wasn't surprised by it. Not really. He knew that not everyone would believe him. There would always be people who'd doubt, even if there was already a bunch of proof laid out.
He can't really do anything about it since that was their own opinion.
Minjae quietly locked his phone and placed it face down on the table beside him.
"I guess I can finally breathe," he muttered and let out a long sigh. "Maybe I should eat."
Just as Minjae was about to stand up to cook so food, his phone rang again. Thinking that it was from Donghyun or the company, he quickly picked it up. However, what greeted him wasn't that.
Incoming Group call from…
[Jihoon, Yura]
Minjae stared at the screen, his brows furrowing slightly.
A strange fear crawled up in his chest.
"That's right… they must have seen it by now."
Minjae shook his head. Thoughts suddenly filled his mind.
Were they calling to ask if it was true?
To distance themselves?
Or to say they didn't want to be dragged into his ss?
His heart pounded harder in his chest.
Even with that fear and even if he hesitated for a second… he swallowed hard and still answered the call.
The screen lit up with two sleepy faces.
Jihoon's hair was a ss, it was sticking up in all directions. He was wearing a hoodie that was zipped up to his chin. On the other hand, Yura was in herbed with a ssy bun and blanket pulled around her shoulders like a cocoon.
Both of them squinted at the screen like they were still adjusting to its brightness. The two obviously just woke up.
The mont Minjae's face showed on the screen, the two leaned in closer to their phones at the sa ti.
"Hyung, are you okay?!"
"Oppa, how are you?"
Minjae blinked at their sudden question. For a second, he couldn't speak. He just stared at their worried expressions on his screen, a little stunned.
"I—" His voice faltered, couldn't think of the right words to use. "You guys… saw it already?" his voice sound hesitant as he asked the question.
"Of course we did!" Jihoon replied imdiately, his voice laced with disbelief. "The mont I opened my phone 5 minutes ago, I saw your na trending online! I thought soone leaked a spoiler or sothing with our drama, but then I saw the rumors…"
"I swear oppa, I almost threw my phone," Yura added, her voice still groggy but full of concern. "What the hell even is that? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Why didn't you text us imdiately? It was Jihoon who woke up by calling a minute ago! I was so surprised!"
Minjae's lips parted, then closed again. Sothing in his chest cracked. He thought they would judge him. Or at least ask him if it was true.
But they didn't.
They didn't even ask anything about the rumors. Instead, they asked questions about him. Because they were worried.
"I… I thought you guys might believe it," he admitted quietly. "You know, with how people are online…"
Jihoon scoffed, shaking his head so hard his hair flopped to the side.
"Believe it, hyung? Are you serious right now?"
"Yeah, Jihoon is right, Oppa," Yura said firmly, her voice sounded softer now, "We know you. We worked with you, traveled with you, shared als and stories with you. You're not the kind of person who would do sothing like that. Anyone who believes that garbage clearly doesn't know you at all."
Minjae lowered his head, his vision blurring slightly as the tears finally welled up in his eyes.
'What is this feeling?' he asked himself.
He was never weak. He had never cried. But why was he crying now for sothing as petty as this one?
Did he beco sick in the head or sothing after those rumors?
Minjae quickly wiped the tears on his face with the sleeve of his hoodie, hoping they didn't see it. But of course, they did.
"Hyung! Why are you crying! Don't be like that!" Jihoon's eyes widened. He looked unease as he saw Minjae's face. "We got your back, hyung! Don't care about them! Think of this as a bunch of potatoes!"
Yura, who didn't notice anything at first, now seed to pity.
"Yes, Oppa. You can do it! We believe in you! Also I've seen the comnts on your agency's post! The people were supportive of you!" Yura also nodded. Her face looked determined as if telling Minjae that they were her for him.
Because of their words, Minjae's heart swelled. Warm feeling spread all over as if it was giving him an embrace.
Instead of getting teary even more, Minjae let out a loud laughter instead. He can't help it since Jihoon and Yura were both making a face as if they were ready to battle or sothing.
Instead of dwelling on the problem longer, Minjae finally showed a smile. He shook his head and nodded.
"Thank you guys, seriously." He uttered, his voice may be rough, btu it was filled with genuine appreciation.
"You're welco, Oppa."
"See! That's what we want to see, Hyung! Your smiling face!"
Minjae looked at the two faces on the screen. Jihoon and Yura looked goofy and ssy, but still, looking at them made him feel at ease, as if a piece of himself had begun to heal.
He wasn't alone.
Not anymore.
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