From Thug to Idol: Transmigrating to a Survival Show

The members awkwardly chuckled since they didn't want to make June feel bad about his suggestion. "Umm, I just wanted to ask," Akira said. "Did you, perhaps, get bitten by Luther and acquired rabies or something?" Casper clicked his tongue. "For your information, Luther is fully vaccinated against any illness that may arise in the future. He's tested every month for any illness or infestations, and he also probably eats better than you," he snapped. "Dang," Jay muttered. "My mom better take some notes." June sighed before shaking his head. "I'm not joking. I know it sounds ridiculous right now, but I feel like we should really employ this concept," June said, easing the tension. "Bro, I know you like Little Meow Meow a lot," Akira prefaced. "But don't you think this is a bit of a stretch? We're going to look like Humongous Meow Meows if we make a song about cats." "You suggested having a kissing scene in the music video," June deadpanned, causing Akira to go silent. Jisung scratched the back of his head. He believed in June very much. Heck, he was a fan of June. However, having a cat-themed song as an idol group whose youngest member was 21 didn't make sense to him. "Umm, maybe we can listen more about your suggestion?" Jisung kindly asked. June pursed his lips, still noticing their hesitation. He couldn't really blame them since he only gave out a vague description. "I don't have any better suggestions, so let's hear it," Zeth said, propping his elbows on top of his knees. June nodded, starting to walk back and forth like he was in some kind of talk. He decided to fill in his members of the current 'hidden' trend that Minjun was pertaining to. "Super Confident. Eight. Picture Love. PpiPpi. What do all of these songs have in common?" June asked.

The members were confused by the sudden question-and-answer portion. Nonetheless, they still answered June seriously. "Umm, they were all big hits?" Jisung guessed. "Aside from that?" June asked. "They're all songs I listen to when I'm in the shower," Zeth answered. June sighed in frustration. "Think… production-wise," June continued. Ren pursed his lips as he tried thinking of the similarities of the songs. Aside from their pop elements, he couldn't really think of anything more. "I don't know if this makes sense," Sehun started off, causing the others to turn to their oldest member. "But they sound easy on the ears. They aren't super complicated. In fact, not a lot of people really comment on these songs production-wise. However, they're still big hits—which is kind of strange." "Except it's not," June said, smiling since one of his members seemed to understand the song's similarities too.

"You're right when you said that the music production aspect isn't super complicated. In fact, it is quite simple. You got yourself an addictive beat, with easy-to-understand lyrics that almost seem cute but romantic…and then you got yourself a great hit." "When I said we should make a song about cats, I didn't mean it literally," June started off, making the members visibly sigh in relief. "However, while I was rescuing Luther on the three a while ago, I suddenly had an epiphany," June continued. He then pressed the play button on the audio file he recorded. June was waiting for the melodic meowing sounds to resonate in the room. However, an audio of him singing a Little Meow Meow song was played instead. His eyes widened, and he quickly paused the audio file. However, his teammates had already heard it. They were confused for a moment before bursting into joyous laughter. "I knew it!" Akira exclaimed. "You want us to be Humongous Meow Meows!" June clicked his tongue and turned on the phone again to search for the right audio file. "Why were you recording a Little Meow Meow cover, by the way?" Jaeyong asked out of curiosity. "Are you planning on posting it to your Navel?" June didn't bother answering the question. He only had one answer in mind—it was really catchy and he couldn't get out of his head. In the end, he decided to make a cover of it so he'd stop thinking about it. "Going back," June cleared his throat, now finally playing the right audio track. Just then, the sound of meowing filled the room. The others were confused for a moment.

However, Ren quickly understood what June was trying to say. The notes…

The progression… Sure, it sounded like cats meowing right at the moment. It didn't really sound like a song. However, the potential it had was impeccable! If it was produced in a way like those hit songs June pertaining to was produced, then Ren had no doubt that it was also going to be a hit song.

"I don't get it," Jay said as soon as the audio was finished. He was already feeling nervous since he told Teddy that EVE was cooking up one of the best hits of the generation. Now, he was fearing for his pride since it didn't seem that way. "Of course, you won't," June said, causing Jay to pout. "So, what do you guys think?" June asked, turning to his members instead. The reaction was still lukewarm. However, Ren gave a very positive reaction. "I'm in," he smiled, already feeling inspired. June smiled back, already knowing that Ren would instantly understand the potential of the audio. In the end, the two of them had the most sensitive ears in the group. Jaeyong, despite still not knowing what to do, also nodded. "I'm in, too. I think we can make it work." "I guess I'm in," Zeth scratched the back of his head. Jisung nodded. "I trust you guys with my life. I'm in." Jay sighed nervously as the members all seemed to agree to use the audio file for their title track. "Wait, guys," Jay said, trying to assess the situation. "Don't you guys need more time about this?" June sighed as he glanced at the wall clock. "Time is a luxury we don't have. We have barely more than a day to finish a whole song." Jay scratched the back of his head and still appeared hesitant.

"What are you even so afraid of?" Ren asked. 'Of being criticized by Ted,' Jay thought.

"It's just that—how are you going to turn that into a song when it's literally just meowing?" Jay asked out loud instead. June smirked, turning to Ren with a knowing glint in his eyes. "Oh, Jay," June chuckled. "Anything could turn into a song if we wanted to."