Chapter 381: First Love
The curtains opened, revealing the eight handsome members of EVE.
Cheers enveloped the hall, with fans and non-fans alike amazed at their appearance. Fans cheered for their names as 'Oasis' started playing, and they even joined in on the fan chant.
Meanwhile, the students who weren't too familiar with them looked at the group with wide eyes and agape mouths.
"I've never seen so many handsome people in my life."
"I might consider stanning at this point."
Yoonhee almost fell from her seat as she gazed at the handsome men. Her eyes automatically locked onto her bias, his pink hair taking most of her attention.
Her eyes sparkled in glee as she looked him up and down. Oh, how she wished to have a conversation with him in real life.
Meanwhile, her little sister smirked as she looked at June.
"He's actually pretty cute," she whispered.
However, her attention was quickly stolen by Zeth, her most beloved member of the group.
Their performance continued, and the cheers just didn't stop. June decided to forget about what he saw a while ago and focus on performing since he didn't want to give the crowd a half-assed show.
EVE was bound to perform three songs for tonight.
One was 'Oasis,' their title track, and their B-side track, 'Caffeine,' quickly followed.
Jisung wanted to perform Red Moon since he wanted to show off his sexy side once again, but the group ultimately decided not to include it since they were performing in front minors.
Their two songs ended, and it was now time for their introductions.
"Shoot to the top! Hello, guys, we are LEVEL-UP!"
The students once again screamed, some becoming borderline hysterical.
Yoonhee, however, stayed still in her seat, her gaze focused in front. She already believed this was the happiest day of her life!
"We came here to send you strength, especially for the graduating students. I know it's tough, but hang in there! You're almost close to the finish line," Sehun encouraged them.
Jisung shyly smiled at the crowd. "Thank you for the warm welcome. We really appreciate it!"
"He's so cute!"
"Are you sure he's older than us?"
"He's like a baby chick!"
Their youngest member was greeted with coos, causing the older members to teasingly glance at him.
"June, do you want to say something?" Jaeyong asked, handing the microphone to their center.
"It's the cheese balls guy!"
"Did you guys see the commercial? It was so funny."
"Balls!"
June pursed his lips and ignored their comments. He almost forgot how popular the commercial was, especially with the younger generation.
"Umm, hi guys! Study hard," he quickly said since he didn't want to become the center of attention anymore.
While some people cheered, most of the students were hung up on the commercial. As a result, June received a lukewarm response.
Yoonhee looked around and saw that it was only her and Nami who were cheering in their row.
She frowned. "What is wrong with these people?" she asked.
June may be popular with the older generation, but he wasn't too popular with the teens. In a survey conducted online, it was found that June's fans were mostly comprised of college students or retired senior citizens.
June wasn't surprised about it. Even in his past life, he wasn't too popular with the kids. It seemed to have transcended to this life. His first interactions with Minjun and Yunha were already testaments to that.
Jaeyong took the microphone from June and smiled.
"It's unfortunate to announce that this will be our last song for today," he said.
The venue was filled with 'awws' of disappointment after Jaeyong's statement.
"But don't worry!" Zeth exclaimed. "This last performance is going to be a special performance."
Murmurs of excitement filled the hall.
"We're going to be performing one of the songs from our album entitled 'First Love,' and you are the very first people to see it live," he said.
The crowd cheered, already feeling excited with the title of the song alone.
When the team was deciding on what to perform, they agreed to sing the most youthful song in their album—'First Love.'
It was a relatively new concept for all the members, but they practiced hard to emulate the feeling of the song.
"Let's go!" Jisung exclaimed before the members took their positions.
Despite the lack of stage effects, it appeared like EVE had a rosy mist engulfing them and flower petals falling all over their head.
They were the epitome of a youngster's first love.
As the music started, a soft melody accompanied by gentle harmonies filled the air, creating an instant connection with the young audience.
Jisung stepped forward, and the crowd went crazy as he sang the first lines.
"As I walk down the halls, I glance at your room.
Your smile reminds me of flowers in bloom."
With the first lines alone, the young students immediately clamored to add the song to their playlists.
"Why have I never heard this song before?"
"Should I send this to her?"
"When will my first love come?"
The members exchanged glances, feeling a sense of nostalgia hit them.
It was evident that most of them didn't have a normal high school lives because of their training period, so in a way, they wanted to channel their inner desires to the song to make it more relatable to the students.
"I passed notes around just to get you to smile.
Getting scolded by the teacher became worthwhile."
The choreography unfolded with graceful simplicity, mirroring the uncomplicated beauty of a first love. The members moved with charming effortlessness, drawing the audience into their narrative. The students also began to follow the easy, synchronized dance.
"Sweating under the sun; laughing under the rain.
A stolen glance, a heartbeat's refrain."
The chorus arrived, and the stage was filled with innocent energy. The students, swept up in the performance, found themselves drawn into the rhythm.
"You were my first love.
You make me think of...
The grass that tickles my soles.
Who knew you'd capture my soul?"
June led the second chorus, and as expected, the cheers weakened once more.
"You were my first love.
You make me think of...
Never wanting to depart.
Who knew you'd capture my heart?"
June took a step back and made way for Zeth's lines. He slightly frowned when the cheers returned, wondering what he did to make the kids hostile to him.
Meanwhile, Yunha looked around and felt quite bad for June. Contrary to what she said a while ago, she actually listened to EVE's song quite a lot.
June had never captured her attention since she never watched any of their live performances. Yunha did see his cheese ball commercial, which she found hilarious, and she also watched their 'Oasis' music video.
For some reason, June just never really stood out to her.
Meanwhile, as June danced behind Casper, a holographic display appeared before him.
[Congratulations, host! You have successfully reached 100,000 followers on your Navel account. Please choose an aspect to improve.]
June stared at the screen with determination before choosing an aspect.
'Visuals.'
[Wise choice. Visuals +1. Current stat: S-]
If these kids didn't want to cheer for him, then June would just leave them speechless.