I'M A GENIUS IDOL BUT MY PASSIVE IS SUNFISH: Chapter 80

 TL by Miru

I'm a Genius Idol but My Passive is Sunfish: Episode 80

Indeed, something seemed unnatural about the way his fingers struggled to unwrap the chocolate. As soon as one fan expressed suspicion, others chimed in, rapidly filling the chat window with speculations that Baekya’s hand was injured or possibly in a cast.

“He must’ve gotten hurt,” she murmured softly, unaware that she was now staring at the screen with sympathy.

Something that should have taken one second stretched into ten long seconds of fumbling before the peach finally managed to bite into the chocolate. After munching thoughtfully for a moment, he extended the chocolate forward, seemingly offering it to someone standing off-camera.

- Ugh, this camerawork sucks. Even I could film better with my foot. Is Manager Nam holding it?
- It's a hidden cam, probably can’t help it.
- Who’s ‘Manager Nam’?
- Let’s be patient until Cheong’s birthday party starts! It’s a hidden camera for Cheong right now anyway.

Only five minutes into the stream and the comments section was already chaotic—fans bickering, speculating, and worrying. Watching the drama unfold, she stared at the screen in confusion. Meanwhile, the cameraman seemed to realize the situation and adjusted slightly, now capturing all four people clearly.

- Wait, is that Manager Namkyung? So Cameraman Kim must be holding it right now.
- Two minutes left until Cheong’s birthday~~!

The rest of the members were nowhere to be seen, presumably off preparing the cake. Suddenly, a hand shot into the frame, grabbed the camera, and flipped the view around. The screen was immediately filled with an extreme close-up of Yulmu’s face, sending the live chat into a frenzy.

[Yulmu: We’re live on U-App to prepare Cheong’s surprise party. Nights, please celebrate with us!]

He was standing in a hallway outside the practice room, speaking so softly it practically turned into an ASMR session. Yulmu then handed the camera back to Deokjin, motioned quietly, and approached Yuyeon and Jihan, who were crouched down near the door.

[Yuyeon: Did you get the lighter?]
[Yulmu: Yeah, right here.]

Taking the lighter from Namkyung, Yulmu handed it over to Yuyeon, who held a cake topped with colorful letter-shaped candles. Jihan quickly checked his wristwatch and stood up.

[Jihan: I’ll turn the lights off right at midnight, come in immediately after.]
[Yulmu: Okay~]

The trio’s whispers were so gentle that viewers jokingly declared their insomnia cured on the spot.

[Cheong: Where’d you go?]
[Jihan: Bathroom.]

Faithfully sticking to his script, Jihan pretended to drink water while stealthily checking the time on his phone. Three seconds, two, one…
At exactly midnight, Jihan flipped off the lights, plunging the practice room into total darkness.

[Cheong: What the—?!]
[Minsung: …Power outage?]
[Cheong: Turn your phone lights on—flash!]

But everyone had already agreed not to have anything bright on them, leaving only a faint green glow leaking from the water cooler. When Cheong took out his phone, Minsung deliberately knocked it out of his hand, sending it onto the sofa.

[Cheong: Hey, why’d you hit me?!]

Cheong reached to pick it up, but Minsung smacked his hand away again, earning a loud protest. In the pitch-black room, it took a moment for their eyes to adjust. Just then, the door swung open, and flickering candlelight spilled warmly into the darkness.

[DASE: Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~]

In true multinational group fashion, DASE sang a custom birthday song tailored especially for their youngest member—though they struggled a bit with the ending in English, quickly switching back to Korean halfway through.

[DASE: Happy birthday, dear Cheongie~ Happy birthday to you~]
[Cheong: What the…!]

Cheong seemed genuinely shocked but quickly broke into a joyful grin. Urged to hurry and blow out the candles, he tightly closed his eyes, hands clasped together as he made a wish. The moment Cheong blew out the candles, Extras #1 and #2 fired off party poppers, sending confetti fluttering. Darkness enveloped the room once again, prompting Jihan—the appointed lighting director—to rush toward the switch and turn the lights back on.

[Baekya: Happy birthday, Cheong.]
[Cheong: Is that gift for me?!]

The two extras now stepped forward for the official gift-giving ceremony. The childish, brightly patterned foil wrapping paper rustled loudly, clearly something one might find in a stationery shop outside an elementary school. It was so clumsily wrapped that even viewers through the screen could sense the members’ amateurish effort.

“Is that even wrapped properly? Looks more like they just crumpled paper around it…”

Instead of regular Scotch tape, they’d wrapped the present in large, industrial-grade packing tape—the kind usually reserved for moving boxes—which Namkyung had brought to the dorm earlier that week.

[Cheong: It’s clothing!]

They might’ve lacked style when it came to gift wrapping, but fortunately, their taste in picking the gift itself seemed impeccable. She let out a relieved sigh. Cheong unfolded the hoodie, which turned out to be a popular item from a well-known sports brand, with the name “DASE” embroidered next to a small white daisy on the left chest.

[Cheong: Wait, it even has our name on it! What is this? Do they sell this here?]

In his excitement, Cheong seemed to be asking if the brand actually sold custom merchandise with their group name.

[Minsung: Nah, they don’t sell them. We bought the hoodies and asked our stylist to customize them.]
[Yulmu: Didn’t our youngest member keep whining about wanting matching hoodies? As your hyungs, we couldn’t just ignore it~]
[Cheong: Then everyone has one?]
[Jihan: Yup, they're all at the dorm.]

Cheong, delighted, immediately stripped off the hoodie he’d been wearing, pulling the new one on over his head, not even bothering to remove the tag. Minsung quickly reached out, removing the sharp pins and tags from the hoodie before Cheong hurt himself.

 

- This is pure healing ㅠㅠㅠ
- I want a matching hoodie too… Grandma wants a DASE hoodie too, guys…
- Is the ‘stylist’ Minsung mentioned their style director? Whoever it is, they’re a genius. Group name DASE > Team slogan "for your DAYS" > Daisy logo. Perfect storytelling!

 

[Minsung: Oh right, Cheong-ah, Night is watching right now.]
[Cheong: Night! Thank you!]

The members only remembered they were live-streaming on U-App after the gift exchange was finished. When Minsung pointed at the camera in Deokjin’s hand, Cheong happily raised his arms, cheering toward the fans. The chat was quickly flooded with birthday wishes, cakes, hearts, and other celebratory emojis.

- Wait, what happened to Baekya’s hand? ㅠㅠ

When they passed Cheong the phone to read the comments, many messages worrying about Baekya’s injury stood out among the congratulatory ones. Cheong glanced up and turned the camera to show Baekya more clearly.

[Cheong: Hamster fell down the stairs after our stage! Now he can't bend his middle finger, and Yulmu hyung's traumatized.]
[Yulmu: Right? Anyone would agree it seemed totally deliberate, right?]
[Baekya: It wasn't! My forehead was itchy, so I scratched it—that’s all! You were just standing right in front of me!]
[Cheong: Deliberate? Dunno. But earlier, Yulmu hyung went 'Waak!' at Hamster, and Manager hyung yelled at them both. Now they’re not allowed near each other.]

This exchange was referring to an incident earlier, where Manager Namkyung had scolded Yulmu after witnessing Baekya casually scratching his forehead with his prominently injured middle finger, arousing suspicion from Yulmu. Unable to ignore such an obviously provocative gesture, Yulmu had lunged at Baekya’s ribs, causing the ticklish sunfish to thrash and roll around helplessly on the floor.

Of course, Yulmu wasn't about to let this opportunity slide—he immediately pinned down the defenseless Baekya, turning the scene into total chaos. Namkyung nearly passed out on the spot, realizing this playful fight could easily turn Baekya’s one-week injury into something lasting a month.

Eventually, it had taken Namkyung yelling at the top of his lungs to pry the two apart—and that was the very incident Cheong was now eagerly recounting.

[Jihan: If you put it like that, the fans will misunderstand. It wasn't a real fight.]
[Yulmu: Yeah, exactly~ Manager hyung just didn't want him to get hurt worse from playing with me.]
[Baekya: Wait, that was the reason? I totally could’ve beaten Na Yulmu though…]

Baekya’s position in DASE’s unofficial fight ranking was obviously sixth, yet he confidently declared otherwise. The chat erupted into a frenzy of laughter at his bold, unfounded claim.

[Baekya: Anyway, you don't need to worry. It's just a slightly sprained finger—it'll heal in no time.]

Baekya hid his injured hand out of embarrassment. It was genuinely just a minor injury, yet the chat was still filled with fans’ tears and panic as if something serious had happened. It made him feel awkward and slightly overwhelmed.

[Yuyeon: By the way, what's ‘Naing’? Fans keep mentioning it.]

At Yuyeon’s question, all the members curiously gathered around, their faces crowding into the camera frame.

 

- This feels like a pet-cam point of view.
- Give me a warning first!! My heart can’t handle you guys suddenly popping up like this!
- Night = Naing! Founder: Baekya!

 

Fans complained dramatically about heart attacks from the sudden close-up. After quickly recovering, a few explained that “Naing” was their new nickname, originating from Night. Hearing Baekya’s name suddenly mentioned, all eyes immediately shifted toward him.

[Baekya: It wasn't me. What's Naing? Never heard of it.]
[Jihan: Fans say you're the founder of ‘Naing.’]
[Minsung: Ah, during yesterday’s acceptance speech you accidentally mispronounced ‘Night’ as ‘Naing.’ Now they’ve embraced it as their nickname.]

Yulmu immediately burst into laughter, gleefully teasing Baekya. Dramatically clapping his hands, Yulmu asked repeatedly how Baekya had come up with something like that, causing Baekya’s face to darken in annoyance.

[Baekya: …It was a mistake.]
[Yulmu: Ah~ A mistake! Night becoming Naing—what a legendary slip-up!]

With thinly veiled patience, Baekya pressed his lips tightly together, silently glaring at Yulmu. Then, as if suddenly inspired, he lifted his injured hand, dramatically opening and closing his fist. Slowly, Yulmu’s laughter faded away.

[Baekya: Why? Go ahead, keep laughing. My hand just suddenly feels really stiff.]
[Yulmu: …Wait, I think he’s serious this time.]

[Baekya: What do you mean, this?]

Shamelessly, Baekya lifted his hand, leaving only the middle finger prominently raised.
Anticipating yet another round of childish fighting, Deokjin wisely angled the camera away, cutting both Baekya and Yulmu out of the frame.

Off-screen, Namkyung anxiously gestured at his neck, desperately signaling to the members to wrap up the live stream before further chaos ensued.