Chapter 68: Karaoke (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 68: Karaoke (2)
We arrived at the karaoke bar.
Ji Nuri claimed she knew a great spot, so we followed her lead. She mentioned the facilities were top-notch and well-maintained.
“...”
Lee Sol, clearly out of her element, descended the stairs with hesitant, uncertain steps.
— “So this is a karaoke bar...”
Her Mini-me peered around the building in wide-eyed wonder.
“Have you never been to one before?” I asked.
“No,” Sol replied, giving a small, bashful nod.
It made sense. She didn't exactly have the personality for a place like this. She was a homebody through and through, so her lack of experience wasn't surprising.
On the other hand, we had someone who was her polar opposite.
“Hello, ma'am!”
Ji Nuri struck up a conversation with her usual effortless sociability.
“Oh, look who it is! How have you been?”
“Same as always, you know how it is.”
“I haven't seen you in a while. I guess school’s been keeping you busy?”
“Tell me about it. We had our sports day today, so we decided to swing by.”
They seemed to be on a first-name basis. Ji Nuri chatted with the owner without a hint of reservation.
“You’re here with friends? I’ll have to throw in some extra time on the house!”
The owner laughed heartily.
We managed to snag an hour of free "service" time. This was exactly why having well-connected friends was a blessing.
“...”
Ji Nuri turned back to us and flashed a triumphant grin.
I had to hand it to her. That was impressive.
“Which room?”
“Number twelve.”
Ji Nuri led the way. We walked down the hallway and arrived at our assigned room. Lee Sol peeked inside.
“...It’s really dark. Aren't they going to turn on the lights?”
She fumbled around the wall, searching for a light switch.
— “Found it.”
Click!
The moment Sol flipped the switch, the party lights roared to life. Colorful bulbs began to spin with a low, mechanical hum.
“Huh?!”
Her eyes trembled in confusion. I quickly reached over and turned the lights back off.
“Karaoke bars are supposed to be like this.”
“O-oh, really...?”
I let out a faint chuckle at her reaction. It was painfully obvious this was her first time.
“Where are the microphones...”
Ah, there they were.
I grabbed the mics sitting next to the karaoke machine. Meanwhile, Lee Sol had already claimed a spot on the inner seat.
“...”
Then, she lightly patted the cushion next to her. Tap, tap.
Was she telling me to sit there?
Just as I was about to move toward her—
Swish.
Shin A-young slipped in, snatching the spot in an instant.
The two girls exchanged a brief, sharp look. A-young wore a thin, knowing smile.
“...”
“What are you doing? Hurry up and sit down.”
Just then, Ji Nuri returned from buying water. She set the bottles on the table and gave me a nudge.
I plopped down on the sofa.
Somehow, I ended up sandwiched right next to Ji Nuri.
— “...How devious.”
Seeing this, Lee Sol’s Mini-me narrowed her eyes, shooting a sulky glare toward Ji Nuri.
— “...Heh. This is getting interesting.”
Shin A-young let out a soft snort. Only her eyes weren't laughing.
‘...Um.’
The atmosphere was heavy enough to make me wonder if I should offer to move. It felt incredibly stifling.
And yet, despite the mounting tension...
“Hum-dee-dum~”
Ji Nuri was humming to herself, staring at her phone.
She really was a carefree soul. I couldn't tell if she was just oblivious or simply didn't care, but she seemed completely unaware of the brewing storm.
Perhaps accepting the way things had turned out, Shin A-young returned to her usual self and picked up the remote.
“What is everyone going to sing?” she asked.
“Hold on, let me think for a sec...”
Ji Nuri had been glued to her phone for a while now. When I peeked to see what she was doing, I saw she was scrolling through popular song charts.
— “Ugh, what should I sing? What’s even popular these days?”
Her Mini-me scratched her head vigorously.
She was deep in thought. For Ji Nuri, who usually preferred Japanese songs, picking a mainstream hit was a major hurdle.
“I need a minute to think, too.”
It had been a while since I’d stepped foot in a karaoke bar, so nothing came to mind immediately.
“Then...”
Shin A-young’s gaze shifted to the side, landing on Lee Sol.
“I’ll go later.”
Lee Sol shook her head desperately. Unused to the environment, she clearly preferred to observe for now.
“Alright. Then I’ll go first, okay?”
“Sure.”
As if she had already decided, Shin A-young quickly punched the buttons on the remote.
— ♩♬♪♬♪♬♪
The intro started immediately.
A cheerful melody filled the room—a song that had been a massive hit a while back.
“Ahem.”
Shin A-young cleared her throat lightly, the sound echoing through the speakers.
It was hard to tell in the dim light, but the tips of her ears were faintly red. Her eyes were fixed firmly on the floor.
— “Haa... I’m getting nervous for no reason.”
Her Mini-me paced back and forth restlessly.
It seemed she was quite shy about singing in front of others. But the time had come. The intro ended, and the first verse began.
— I wondered so many times what kind of greeting would be best~
A clear, pure voice rang out.
“Oh...”
She was actually quite good, especially considering her nerves. Her pitch was incredibly steady.
She didn't use any flashy techniques; her voice was simply clean and bright, which suited the song perfectly.
— Ah, ah, I guess I’m still not ready yet~
Perhaps gaining confidence from our reactions, the slight tremor in her voice faded. Her stiff posture relaxed.
— “Ah, ah, I guess I’m still not ready yet~”
The Mini-me also swayed her shoulders and sang along, even doing a little wiggle of a dance.
The initial nerves had vanished, and before long, she was genuinely enjoying the moment.
And so, the first turn ended.
“Phew—”
Exhaling, Shin A-young sat back down.
— ♩♬♪♬♪♬♪
She must have reserved a second song in advance.
The intro for the next track started right away—a gentle ballad.
It wasn't me. I turned my head to see who the culprit was.
“Who picked this?”
“...I reserved it.”
Lee Sol stood up with a look of grim determination. It seemed she had finally settled on a ballad after all that searching.
— The tears... the tears that fall at the end of a weary day.
‘...She’s good?’
Aside from missing the very first beat, it was a great start. Lee Sol was a surprisingly talented singer.
It was a melancholic song, but it felt different when Sol sang it. Rather than pure sadness, it carried a sense of youthful innocence.
She seemed to struggle slightly with the high notes, but her voice held firm without cracking.
Her Mini-me’s face was flushed as she gripped the tiny microphone with both hands, singing her heart out.
Sol herself looked satisfied.
— “I think I did okay...?”
The Mini-me let out a small, proud huff.
Now it was Ji Nuri’s turn. She had picked her song earlier.
— “Sigh... This should be decent enough.”
There wasn't a hint of nervousness in Ji Nuri. She just seemed annoyed that she had to settle for a mainstream pop song.
The intro ended.
— Mmm-hmm~
She started with a light hum. The vibe in the room shifted instantly.
“Whoa...”
I couldn't help but marvel. There was a reason she had been accepted into the Department of Practical Music.
It wasn't that A-young or Sol were bad, but comparing them to Ji Nuri was almost unfair.
I listened, completely entranced, until the final notes of the second verse faded away.
“Phew...”
With a short breath, the song came to an end.
Clap, clap, clap—
A round of applause followed. All three of us had the same reaction. It felt less like karaoke and more like a mini-concert.
“Hey now~ don't do that, it’s embarrassing.”
Ji Nuri waved her hands dismissively, sitting down with a bashful look.
— “Coming with friends is fun too. It’s a bit of a shame I can’t sing what I really want to, though...”
I could see her lingering desire to belt out some anime OSTs.
— “Well, I can just come back later with Lee Seung-ho and Seung-ah.”
She was already planning the next trip. However, my opinion on the matter clearly wasn't part of her calculations.
“It’s your turn next, Seung-ho.”
I grabbed the microphone. It had been a while since I’d sung, and I felt a flutter of nerves.
Huu—
After taking a deep breath, I sang the first line.
*
...The music gradually faded out.
My song ended.
“...”
An awkward, heavy silence followed.
“Uh... who wants to go next...?”
Shin A-young offered the remote with a strained, awkward smile.
“...You, you have a very... unique style!”
Lee Sol nodded. It was a compliment squeezed out through half-closed eyes, as if she were trying to find a silver lining in a storm cloud.
“...”
At least those two were trying to be mindful of my feelings. Ji Nuri was a different story.
I glanced to the side.
— “...Hold it in, hold it in.”
She was desperately stifling her laughter.
Ji Nuri’s Mini-me had her cheeks puffed out like they were about to pop. Her tightly clenched hands were trembling with the effort of staying quiet.
“...Was it that bad?”
“Ahem... I’m sure you’ll get better if you practice?”
Ji Nuri let out a dry cough. She patted my shoulder, telling me to chin up.
In other words: if I wanted to be even remotely good, I desperately needed practice.
“...”
I didn't come to karaoke often, and when I did, I usually went alone. This was the first time I’d received such a brutally objective evaluation.
It was a bit of a shock.
‘No wonder...’
Lee Seung-ah always refused to go to karaoke with me. She used to insult my singing, but since she insulted me as a daily routine, I just thought she was being her usual prickly self.
It was a little depressing.
“...Sigh.”
Whatever. I let it go.
Yeah, what was the point of being good? It’s not like I was planning to become an idol. I knew I wasn't that talented to begin with; I just thought I was at least average.
“...I’m going to the restroom for a bit.”
I quietly stood up.
Even so, the shock lingered. I wanted to step out for a moment to clear my head.
As I opened the door and stepped into the hallway—
“Are you going straight to Ol-Young?”
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
A group of schoolgirls was walking down the narrow hallway, chatting animatedly.
I stopped and leaned against the wall to let them pass. As they walked by, my eyes momentarily locked with one of the girls.
“...”
“...”
Her appearance registered in an instant.
Platinum blonde hair, short bangs that revealed her eyebrows, and the rest tied back in a neat style.
“...?”
I felt like I’d seen her somewhere before. The feeling was strong, but I couldn't quite place her.
Soon, she looked away and moved past me.
I continued on my way.
— “-----”
For some reason, a faint noise I heard bothered me, but I quickly brushed it off.
It happened all the time. That was just the reality of going outside. It wasn't exactly a rare occurrence.