Chapter 41: CHAPTER FORTY

Po and Thame froze, staring at each other. Thame wanted desperately to hug Po, but a team member’s voice broke through the silence.

“Thame, are you over there?”

A few flashlight beams began moving in their direction. Po quickly finished attaching the equipment to Thame and shoved another flashlight into his hand.

“There’s no time. Go meet your friends.”

Thame nodded and hurried off while Po slipped away in the opposite direction, following the plan Dylan had laid out.

The plan was simple:

“We need to take over the control room,” Dylan had explained. “Normally, in concerts, the main control room oversees everything—lights, sound, stage effects, you name it. We need to seize that room.”

“But there’s no way we can just storm in and take it over,” Pepper countered.

“Exactly,” Dylan agreed. “Unless we set up a secondary control room. Po will patch the lines from the main control room into this new room, which we’ll call the mini control room.

From there, everything in the concert will be managed by Po and Mick. If Mick decides to help, that is.”

That was why Jun had asked Po if he could handle the responsibility, and Po had accepted.

Back in the concert hall, the lights had gone out for a significant amount of time, leaving the fans restless. They began chanting:

“Mars! Mars! Mars! Mars!”

Meanwhile, Pemika tried to regain control. When she realized the main control room had been switched, she ordered Ming and Tae:

“Ming, find out where the main control room is now and take it back.”

“Yes.”

“Tae, come with me. Let’s find the members and have a long talk.” But as Pemika headed backstage, a team member rushed over to report:

“We can’t find any of the members.”

At the same time, Tae was on the phone with Ming. “Khun Pemika, Ming says he found the control room. Mick and Po are in charge.”

Pemika frowned. “Mick and Po?”

“Should we cut the power there and reset the system? It’ll take some time, though.”

Pemika thought for a moment before responding, “Let it be. Just cut the livestream to Korea. I’ll handle it from here. Whatever happens next, make sure it doesn’t leave this venue. I’d like to see what they’re capable of.”

—

Inside the mini control room, Mick and Po worked together.

“Alright, give it everything you’ve got,” Mick said.

“Lights are ready,” Po replied with a grin, noticing Ming shouting in frustration outside.

Back in the hall, the audience screamed as music started playing. It was an unfamiliar song—something new from Mars. Dylan’s voice came through first:

“Sorry to keep you waiting. The fun starts in… 10, 9…” The fans joined in, counting down: “8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!”

The music kicked in, and Dylan began rapping, followed by Nano, Pepper, and Jun. Through their lyrics, they spoke directly to Pemika about what Mars truly wanted—what Mars represented. Their words echoed sentiments Thame had written in his letters:

They didn’t want greatness if it meant being apart.

As the last lines were sung, the fans, known as Spheres, broke into tears and began chanting:

“OT5! OT5! OT5!” over and over again.

Thame appeared on stage last, stepping into the spotlight. He looked directly at Pemika, seated in the VIP section, and sang a crucial verse, letting her know that Mars would always be five members—not four, not more, not less. He wouldn’t leave anyone behind, nor would he allow anyone to fall away, even if it meant sacrificing the path to “success.”

T-Pop didn’t need to follow K-Pop’s route. Thame believed T-Pop could forge its own path.

And that path, he believed, was one they could walk together, as five.

The entire hall felt the message. The final song of Mars resonated deeply, sung straight from their hearts. Fans continued chanting “OT5” relentlessly, as if pleading with the company to listen to their artists for once.

—

After the concert, Thame, Jun, Pepper, Nano, and Dylan came down from the stage to find Pemika waiting for them.

“Do you even realize what you’ve done? Not only have you disrupted this concert, but you’ve also caused damage to the company,” Pemika began.

“We’re sorry,” Pepper stepped forward, taking responsibility.

“But we did it because—” Jun tried to add, but Pemika raised her hand to stop him.

“No need to explain. You’ve said everything up there already.”

She looked at the five artists she had nurtured from the beginning.

“I’m very disappointed in you. Because of what you’ve done, I can’t follow through with what I’d planned for Mars. I won’t keep Mars as a four-member group anymore.”

Dylan, Pepper, Jun, and Nano remained silent, bracing for what they knew was coming.

“And you,” Pemika turned to Thame. “Korea saw everything you did up there. They’re going to terminate your contract.”

Thame hesitated, processing her words, which were sharp but laced with underlying emotion.

“Winner Entertainment has suffered greatly because of your actions. And this damage comes with a price. You’ll all have to compensate the company. From this moment on, you’re no longer part of Winner.”

Pemika turned to leave, but Thame called after her.

“I heard you cut the Korean livestream.”

Pemika stopped.

“That means Korea didn’t see what just happened. But you’re still letting all of us leave Winner.”

“Yes.”

“You’re letting us leave together?”

“Yes,” Pemika admitted, her voice steady. “As you said on stage, if this is what you want, and it’s not something Winner can provide, then parting ways is for the best.”

Thame looked at Pemika. Despite her composed demeanor, he knew she cared deeply for them. She had always wanted the best for Mars, even if it differed from what they wanted for themselves.

Pemika had hoped to see T-Pop thrive, to see Winner Entertainment break into larger markets, and to pave the way for future generations. But Mars had just shown her that her vision of “the best” wasn’t the same as theirs.

“Don’t think I’m being soft,” she warned, cutting through the tender moment. “I’ll be sending you all the bills soon.”

“Thank you for understanding,” Thame said sincerely. “I know it’s been hard for you too.”

“It’s not hard at all,” Pemika replied, trying to suppress the emotional turmoil within her. Then, with a slightly teasing tone, she added, “As long as you pay.”

Everyone chuckled softly as Pemika walked away. Mick, who had been approaching the group, saw her and instinctively tried to dodge.

“Mick!”

Mick flinched and quickly pleaded, “The kids made me do it, I swear!”

TO BE CONTINUED.