“Can I give you a song?”
“You finally understand me.”
I took out a cigarette and lit it in the lobby of the studio building, but Lim Hyeonsu didn’t object.
Yeah, who dared to stop me.
Lim Hyeonsu looked desperate for a cigarette, so I offered her one.
“Would you like to have one?”
“… Aren’t you an idol?”
“… Ah?”
It didn’t occur to me that idols might not be allowed to smoke. Lim Hyeonsu stammered, looking nervous.
“What the hell….”
She glanced around. Then she pulled out one for herself and asked me for a light.
Click, click.
As I used the lighter to light her cigarette, Lim Hyeonsu shuddered as if experiencing goosebumps.
I looked at her slowly.
“Ms. Composer, that’s what I want. Please pick out a great song with a high-quality beat.”
“Flashy and simple? I assume you don’t want something cheap. Huh… You just want one?”
“Yes. I’m going to release it as a single. I’ll think about the full album later.”
“What’s the concept? Have you decided?”
Good point.
Lim Hyeonsu took a notebook and started writing as I explained what I was thinking.
Since I hadn’t talked to the planning team yet, I could only explain the concept abstractly. But when I mentioned the genre, Lim Hyeonsu seemed to understand perfectly.
“Okay. I get the general direction. Send a contract with the deposit and a time frame.”
“A contract?”
“What?”
“Deposit first, before the contract.”
There’s no way Daepaseong Entertainment would have the money to pay Lim Hyeonsu. At least, there was no budget for a comeback song for The Dawn, that’s for sure.
No, but Lim Hyeonsu still hadn’t come to her senses. I noticed she was still complaining about the deposit.
I spoke with a rhythmic tone.
“You will donate your talent, Ms. Composer.”
It’s time to get a grip on this crazy world.
Lim Hyeonsu’s mouth dropped open.
“Donate my talent? Me? The Lim Hyeonsu…?”
I hummed the melody of the pirated song we heard earlier.
“Let’s have a drink, you and I – words I’ve longed to say without end.”
As I sang a few more lines, Lim Hyeonsu bit her lip.
“I’ll do it. I’ll donate my talent!”
“Wow, thank you.”
“Am I dreaming? Have I… become a sucker?”
“It’s not a dream.”
I kindly replied and glanced at my watch. It was time to discuss the rest of the arrangement.
“It’s three o’clock now. Please send the first demo by 7 pm tonight.”
“What? In four hours? Are you crazy?!”
“If you don’t want to, you can always quit.”
“I… ”
“I love you so much—”
The lyrics of Lim Hyeonsu’s plagiarized song.
She leaned against the sofa and hummed while taking deep puffs of her cigarette. As the smoke rose like clouds, Lim Hyseonsu baked a piece of bread in her mouth.
“Tell me if this is love or something—”
“I got it. I’ll do it! I’ll send it by 7 pm!”
“Oh, you’re amazing. Thank you for your passion.”
She cursed and grumbled as if spitting curses from her lips, but I didn’t care.
Ah, Lim Hyeonsu was easy to handle.
I felt as if I’d drank cider. I watched with pride as she scribbled away at the concept, and when she was done, she tossed the pencil to me.
“Write down your number.”
“Yes.”
I accepted it and wrote down my phone number slowly.
– “010-XXXX-XXXX, this is Seo Hoyun. Nice to meet you ^^”
It was true that the last emoji was meant to make her angry. Seeing it, Lim Hyeonsu grabbed the back of her neck.
Now that she seemed to understand, I should probably start leaving. I still had a long way to go.
“I’ll be leaving now, Ms. Composer. Nice to meet you.”
“Wait a minute. You’re not going to tell anyone about this, right?”
“No, Ms. Composer. I have my principles too.”
If it paid well, I would talk. If it didn’t, I wouldn’t. That was a given.
And I was one to keep my loyalty.
“Don’t worry. I’ll leave now.”
As I said that and stood up, Lim Hyeonsu grabbed me anxiously. When I turned around, she muttered with a face that looked like she was seeing a devil or a ghost.
“What are you really?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you have a rich relative? Or are you a journalist? If not, then what are you? Why are you so glib?”
Me? I’m a PD who received overflowing love calls, of course.
“With QBS, I’m…”
“A what?”
Ding!
[Options:
- Cute idol, Hoowoo!
- Seo Hoyun, the one who will captivate you!
- Seo Hoyun, the star that shines forever!]
Wow, this is really cheesy.
I bit my lips. I wanted to vomit, but if I did, I wouldn’t have enough time, and the dialogue from the options would be randomly selected. I closed my eyes.
“Seo Hoyun, the star that shines forever.”
“What… What did you say?”
“It sparkles, doesn’t it…?”
“Are you really crazy?”
Lim Hyeonsu laughed as if she had lost her mind. I was the same. I wasn’t in my right mind either.
“You’re really a crazy bastard….”
“I don’t really want to hear it from you, Ms. Composer… Well, whatever.”
I roughly nodded and was about to leave but stopped my steps again.
“Oh, right. I’ll send you my account number and the tablet’s price, so send me the payment.”
“…”
Even if I had a mental breakdown, I couldn’t forget about getting reimbursed for my precious tablet.
***
[Sudden Quest Completed: “Let’s get the comeback song!”
PD… No, Hoyun, I thought you were the devil!
Reward: Charm +10 added.]
“Hey, there were conversation options…?”
[Yes!]
“When will it come out? Is there a standard?”
[Depends on the System window’s whims!]
“Dammit…”
I was foolish to expect a proper answer.
I took out my phone and checked my messenger.
Several messages from my manager and the members were sent earlier.
Ignoring them all, I clicked on the conversation with Lim Hyeonsu. I saw the conversation we had for the past few hours.
– Me: Ms. Composer, is it not finished yet?
– Me: Knock, knock.
There was no reply, but it showed as read. When I scrolled a little further, it showed that I also sent multiple messages like a madman.
– Me: Knock, knock.
– Me: Knock, knock.
– Me: Knock, knock.
– Me: Knock, knock.
– Me: Knock, knock.
– Lim Hyeonsu: Are you crazy?
– Me: Our Ms. Composer, is it not finished yet? ^^
I scrolled down more on the messenger.
Lim Hyeonsu finally sent the file.
– Lim Hyeonsu: You crazy bastard, it’s finished.
– Lim Hyeonsu: Eat and get lost.
She actually made a song in just four hours. She hastily added some lyrics to the beat and recorded it, but surprisingly, it turned out pretty good. It just showed that having a solid foundation of skills really helped.
Why did Lim Hyeonsu resort to plagiarism and unnecessary pressure…? What a fool.
I called Seo Hojin, who was washing dishes while listening to the song in the living room.
“Hey, Seo Hojin.”
“What’s up?”
“Come here.”
Seo Hojin came over obediently, perhaps because he thought he had done something wrong to me. But even so, he seemed startled when he saw my face.
Even I would be surprised if he suddenly became ten years younger. I was even startled when I looked in the mirror.
“Listen to this.”
“What is it, a song?”
Seo Hojin listened to it, half asleep at first, not knowing what it was. But as he listened, he nodded and even gave a thumbs up.
“Hey, it’s pretty good.”
I stopped the song.
“Sing the chorus again?”
“What? How am I supposed to remember that?”
Seo Hojin wasn’t particularly talented in music, but he was still better than average. That’s why he was useful in checking things like this.
“Hey, is that your song, hyung?”
“You don’t have to know.”
“Oh, come on….”
I sent a message to Lim Hyeonsu.
– Me: Ms. Composer, is this all you can do?
– Me: I just had my brother listen to it, but he couldn’t remember it after five seconds… There’s no impact.
– Me: I thought you were better than this…
After I sent the message, Lim Hyeonsu called me. I deliberately waited 15 seconds before answering.
“Hello.”
– “What the hell?!”
“It’s late at night, but you sound really healthy.”
When I made a casual greeting, Lim Hyeonsu became silent for a moment.
– “After taking the time to do that much, all you have to say is that it lacked impact?”
“…Oh, did I offend you?”
– “Am I not Lim Hyeonsu? Blue Tiger!”
“Oh… You’re really amazing.”
As I flipped through channels with the TV remote, I yawned deliberately so that Lim Hyeonsu could hear it.
I could hear her pride crumbling.
– “You, you…”
“I had high expectations because you’re such an amazing person, but it’s a shame. It seems like Blue Tiger can’t do any better than this.”
– “Is the song really that bad?”
“It’s not bad, per se…”
I drew it out slowly, making her curious.
All creators were naturally curious about the reactions to their works.
“Actually, it’s like… you claim to have been inspired for three hours, but it feels like you cursed for ten minutes and then spent five minutes recording a rough guide and sent it.”
– “… ”
She probably felt guilty, as Lim Hyeonsu didn’t answer for long. Then she asked me a question slyly.
– “Do you have CCTV installed outside?”
“Hahaha, you have such a rich imagination.”
– “You’re a scary bastard…”
“Anyway, is that all?”
I lowered my voice.
In moments such as these, a particular tone and voice were required, as if bestowing optimism while anticipating a further contribution from the other individual — as though they were capable of more.
“I know you, Ms. Composer.”
– “… ”
“I also know that you can do better. That’s why it’s even more disappointing that someone so good can do something so sloppy and say it’s their best.”
Seo Hojin, who had been inadvertently eavesdropping, trembled with fear.
“If I was wrong, there’s nothing I can do.”
I waited five seconds for a response, and then Lim Hyeonsu replied exactly five seconds later.
– “You… Just wait.”
And then, the call was disconnected. I couldn’t help but feel cheerful and giggle.
“Lim Hyeonsu, she’s got quite a temper.”
I can’t stop using her as a stepping stone with this song.
In a little while, maybe one or two hours, Lim Hyeonsu would contact me again. I just had to wait until then.
I stopped flipping through the channels on a variety show where an idol was appearing. That face struggling with a hammer, I knew the person very well.
Joo Woosung.
He was undoubtedly one of the most successful idols in Korea.
Hmm.
Seo Hojin was sitting on the couch and peeling a tangerine.
“Oh, isn’t that Black Call’s Joo Woosung?”
“Yeah, Seo Hojin knows a lot.”
“You’re pissing me off.”
It was the tone of someone who wanted to show off their shallow knowledge, even if they knew nothing about idols. Seo Hojin seemed to feel unjust and expressed his opinion.
“I know him too, you know? I couldn’t help but know since my classmates praised him so much. He’s so popular in our department….”
“Seo Hojin, look up his SNS followers.”
“Okay.”
Seo Hojin fiddled with his phone for a long time and eventually showed me the screen.
“He’s 14th in the country. A hundred million followers.”
“Really? Joo Woosung has grown a lot.”
Right, Joo Woosung was that popular these days.
Well, he was already popular…
Something came to mind. Joo Woosung.
I pursed my lips as I looked at Joo Woosung and then smiled.
I remembered.
Seo Hojin trembled again.
“Why, why are you laughing like that?”
“…”
“I really hate it when you smile so friendly like that….”
“Hojin, tangerine.”
“Yes.”
Seo Hojin suddenly became rigid and swiftly peeled a tangerine before handing it to me. While eating the fruit, I observed Joo Woosung on the TV program, smiling serenely, oblivious to his impending fate.
The sweet and sourness of the fruit spread in my mouth.
He was the next target.
