All of Ha-eun’s fan meeting tickets were sold out.
According to Luna Entertainment, the competition for them had been fierce.
Apparently, there were even scalpers secretly trading tickets, which suggested that far more people were interested in the event than Ha-eun had expected.
‘I thought 500 seats would be enough….’
Maybe it was because this was her first fan meeting.
The idea of this spacious live hall being filled solely with her fans didn’t quite feel real yet.
It was a different kind of nervousness compared to rehearsing at Gocheok Sky Dome.
She kept dwelling on how to make the experience worthwhile for people who came just to see her.
Lost in thought, Ha-eun wandered around the live hall, eventually stopping at the entrance, where her photo exhibition and photo booth were set up.
Part of her felt sentimental seeing the display of her photos.
But the real reason she stopped—
"Are these still cuts not for sale? They’d sell really well as photocards."
"Oh, they’re not for sale. We’ll be giving them out as gifts on the day of the fan meeting."
—was because Yoon Seung-jae was chatting with one of the fan meeting staff in front of her life-size standee.
When Ha-eun approached and asked if he was interested in her merchandise, Seung-jae’s answer was straightforward.
"They came out really well. I kind of feel like collecting them."
"Hmm, I think we have a few extra. Should I get you one later?"
"That’d be great. But it’s a little scary to think that this young lady will stab me with a knife someday."
"...Lee Ye-seo and Kim Jung-hyun are completely different people, you know."
After briefly discussing their roles as Ye-seo and Kang Chan-sung in Veterans, Seung-jae turned to Ha-eun, who was silently staring at her standee.
"Oh, right. Can I ask you something?"
"I noticed earlier—you’re really good at hosting. Did you take on a new show or something?"
He went on to say that during the rehearsal, Ha-eun had seemed like a seasoned MC.
He wondered if she’d been practicing hosting for an upcoming variety show.
"Usually, people hire professional MCs for fan meetings, but you could probably handle everything on your own."
To be honest, it was a tricky question.
She couldn’t exactly say it was thanks to over a year of experience as Diah.
At the same time, she couldn’t make up a fake show.
So, Ha-eun awkwardly explained that she had just followed the fan meeting script she had prepared in advance.
Just then, Da-yeon returned from a quick trip to the restroom.
But for some reason, she narrowed her eyes slightly and asked what Ha-eun and Seung-jae had been talking about.
"...Appearance fees?"
Ha-eun quickly changed the subject to the merchandise she had promised Seung-jae.
After all, she couldn’t let Da-yeon in on the secret behind her hosting skills either.
The last thing Ha-eun wanted was for Da-yeon to start digging into why she was so good at hosting.
Desperate to divert the conversation, Ha-eun grabbed one of her photocards and asked Da-yeon what she thought of it.
"Oh? The photocards are the appearance fee? Then he should get more."
"What about me? Why don’t I get any?"
Somehow, the situation got even more tangled.
Why did everything have to turn into a competition between them?
‘They better not act during the fan meeting….’
To put it simply, they were like cats and dogs.
Though, to be fair, it was mostly Da-yeon one-sidedly trying to keep Seung-jae in check.
From Ha-eun’s perspective, there was no reason for them to bicker.
Back during the Moonlight That Parts the Clouds shoot, they had gotten along just fine.
Why did they always seem to argue whenever they were in front of her now?
"Hey, Lee Ha-eun. Give me a photocard too."
"I mean, I can, but… can I give it to you after the fan meeting?"
"It’s just… I don’t know how many extras we’ll have left."
"...If that’s the case, fine."
Only after pacifying Da-yeon could Ha-eun finally return to the live hall.
After checking the lights and mic setup, she wrapped up the rehearsal with a practice performance for her fan meeting entrance.
On the day of the fan meeting, even though it was still a while before the doors opened, a line of people had already started forming.
Surprised by the sight, Ha-eun turned to her manager, Ju Jung-yoon, and asked if this was normal.
"There aren’t even any first-come, first-serve events…"
"That’s just how fandoms are."
News reached Ha-eun that Heo Joo-eun, an old acquaintance and entertainment journalist, had already arrived at the venue. Apparently, she was interviewing one of Ha-eun’s fans about their thoughts on the fan meeting.
This additional detail made the reality of the event sink in further, causing Ha-eun’s heart to flutter with nervous excitement.
Meeting her fans felt far more daunting than she had anticipated.
‘...I need to do well. I really, really need to do well....’
Soon after, preparations began with makeup and a wardrobe change.
Since the fan meeting would start with Ha-eun’s entrance performance, her appearance had to match the song she would be performing.
After countless brushes smoothed her hair, she finally made her way backstage.
The audio from the fan meeting teaser playing inside the live hall reached her ears.
"Lee Ha-eun’s 1st FAN MEETING. How does it feel, Ha-eun?"
"Honestly, I’m nervous. I think I’m even more nervous than I was during the Infinite Challenge Song Festival."
‘Oh... So that was for the teaser.’
The teaser, styled like a vlog, offered a brief glimpse into the fan meeting preparations.
The voices of the two guest stars, Da-yeon and Yoon Seung-jae, were distorted to hide their identities.
However, their conversation was unmistakably theirs, with frequent references to Moonlight That Parts the Clouds.
"You don’t know how scary Ha-eun was during the Moonlight shoot, do you?"
"Oh, don’t be mistaken. The real terrifying moments with Lee Ha-eun happen elsewhere."
‘...Everyone’s going to know who they are.’
The voice distortion served no real purpose—anyone would be able to identify who was speaking.
While Ha-eun listened to the teaser filled with familiar voices, the start time for the fan meeting arrived.
Within seconds of the teaser ending, the live hall fell into a hushed silence.
And then, a minute that felt like an hour passed.
The teaser’s conclusion was replaced by the intro of One Spring Day.
Cheers erupted throughout the hall almost instantly.
"Alright, don’t be nervous. Just think of it as hanging out casually with your fans~."
As always, Ju Jung-yoon stood by Ha-eun’s side, giving her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
With a final "Fighting!" and a light nudge on her back, Jung-yoon sent Ha-eun on her way.
And then another step.
"One day, spring came into our lives, circling us again and again—♪"
Singing One Spring Day from backstage, Ha-eun finally stepped onto the stage.
There, she was met with countless gazes from the audience.
‘...This is the first time I’ve felt anything ....’
A wave of emotions surged toward her—delight, excitement, anticipation.
Holding a mic in one hand and waving to her fans with the other, Ha-eun felt the weight of these unfamiliar feelings.
Even so, she welcomed it all.
This exhilarating rush made her realize why people held fan meetings in the first place.
"Hello, I’m Lee Ha-eun."
Though it was the most ordinary greeting she had repeated countless times before, her heart refused to settle.
She tried her best to maintain a composed expression, but her chest trembled with every passing moment.
"There are so many more of you here than I ever imagined… If I’d known, I would have booked a bigger venue…."
After the lengthy introductions between Ha-eun and her fans, the fan meeting kicked off with a quiz session.
The format was simple: Ha-eun would pose a question, and fans in the audience would answer to win small prizes.
Questions about Ha-eun’s birthday, debut work, and even her first Instagram post were answered smoothly.
That was until the next question.
"Alright, next question. What’s my favorite food—"
The moment Ha-eun asked about her favorite food, a thunderous shout that dwarfed all previous voices echoed from somewhere in the audience.
"...? Who said that?"
Ha-eun’s gaze naturally shifted toward the direction of the loud voice.
A petite, adorably youthful face—one she found oddly familiar—was cupped in two hands fashioned like a megaphone.
"Red Velvet—! Cake—!!"