Chapter 179: Who Are You.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 179: Who Are You.
“Alright~ Let's get right into it.”
“...Aren't you a little too excited?”
Unable to watch any longer, I had to say something.
“Hey! You’re the weird one. I mean, Leah is about to sing right in front of me! You rascal!”
You know, you should really try to keep your personal and professional lives separate.
The teacher’s smile, which seemed permanently plastered on his face, looked ridiculous to me.
“Ah. Ah. Can you hear me?”
“Yes, yes! We can hear you perfectly! You’re perfect!”
He should’ve been this nice to Doah.
A pang of disappointment made me glance away.
“Uh... well, I’ll start then?”
On the other side of the recording booth.
As the instrumental began to play, Leah started to sing with a calm composure.
“I'll show you that dream~ reflected beyond the horizon~”
Honestly, I’d often wondered why people paid so much money to go to concerts, but this time, I had to admit I got it.
-Clap clap clap
The teacher clapped while still seated.
It was a completely different reaction.
At the same time, it was a perfectly understandable one.
Because even I, who was just watching, found myself clapping along instinctively.
When the music stopped, she turned to us with a reaction no different from Fumurin or Luka's and asked a question.
“Was that okay?”
Without even turning on his mic, the teacher gave her a big thumbs-up.
“First place! First place! This is it! This is how you sing, Taemin!”
But I’m not a singer.
Even though shaking me wouldn't accomplish anything, the teacher grabbed my shirt and shook me wildly.
“Leah-ssi! That was so good! We're just going to listen back to it once, and we'll let you know if there are any parts that need fixing, okay?”
“Okay.”
The three of us listened to the recorded version side by side.
To my ears, it sounded like it couldn't get any better.
But the teacher was a pro, after all.
He stroked his chin once, then made a few marks on the lyric sheet.
“Here and here. We're going to do these again. For this part, I'd like you to bend the note at the end.”
“Okay.”
“And for this part, can you possibly go higher?”
The highest part of the song, which only Leah in this group could pull off.
Higher than that...?
“Uh... um... I've never tried, so I'm not sure... Should I give it a shot?”
“You sound quite comfortable in the current version. This is optional. If you can go higher, great. If not, we can just stick with this take. It's fine either way.”
“Ah. Then I'll give it a try.”
As she put her headphones back on, I asked the teacher something I’d been curious about.
“Why make her go higher?”
“Because I think a more strained, desperate feeling would be good here. The lyrics call for it, right? It's ‘I wished for it. Desperately~’ so it needs a bit more desperation.”
“So you change things on the spot like that.”
“But I usually don't recommend changing things. I'm only asking now because I think Leah-ssi has the skill for it.”
The recording started once more.
This time, too, Leah nailed the high-note part with her overwhelming vocal power.
“Kiya! Aww. This is why I can't stop being a fan.”
I thought to myself that it was a good thing the teacher didn't have a wife.
What if I were married to Doah and acted like this in the recording studio?
I’d probably be turned to dust.
After finishing the recording, Leah came back over to our side, still looking anxious as she sought our approval.
“Uh... how was it?”
“Leah-ssi.”
The teacher looked at her with a rather serious expression.
“Yes...”
“We’re done.”
“...Huh?”
“I’m saying today's recording session is over.”
Looking bewildered, Leah tilted her head.
“So, am I free to go now?”
“Ah. Have you eaten yet, by any chance?”
No way... this guy...?
Is he really going to act on his personal feelings like this?
What should I do with this guy trying to score a free dinner date with a VTuber?
“No? Not yet.”
“We were about to leave for the day too, and Taemin and I were planning to grab dinner together.”
A dinner plan I knew nothing about.
When I shot him a “What are you doing?” look, he looked up at me with the face of a pitiful puppy.
For a moment, I saw Yoonje's face perfectly superimposed over his.
“You finished so smoothly that I was thinking of treating you to a meal. Would that be alright?”
“Ah... Yes. That's fine.”
“Then if you could wait out front, I'll just quickly clean up the studio and come down. Taemin. You go down with her.”
“...Yes.”
My phone vibrated, and I reached into my pocket.
The message was from the man right next to me.
[I helped you get Luka's autograph earlier, so just help me out this once. Please.]
[(Some cute emoji)]
...So this was your plan all along?
It was absurd, but it was just dinner... Right... I mean... he did buy me lunch earlier.
...What would Doah say if she found out about this?
It was a tricky situation.
But I had no intention of hiding it.
I wasn't the one who suggested it, and it's not like Leah asked me out to eat separately. What was there to be afraid of?
The clack, clack of Leah's heels echoed off the high ceiling as we descended the stairs.
The two of us walked in silence.
I wished she would at least look at her phone, but even after we were outside, she just stood there demurely, staring at a streetlight.
“Ah... um...”
Unable to bear the silence any longer, I spoke first.
“...Yes?”
“Um. If you feel uncomfortable about dinner, it's okay for you to just leave. The teacher just likes these kinds of things. If you have something else to do.”
“No... I'm really okay with eating together...”
Her answer left me with nothing to say.
“Um. You're a really great singer. Hahaha.”
Teacher, if you're coming, please hurry up.
This is tough.
“Not at all. I'm just glad you think so.”
Footsteps sounded from behind.
He must have been desperate to get here, practically running.
I’m not kidding, I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen the teacher run.
“Aigoo. I'm so sorry to keep you waiting. Do you like pasta?”
“Yes, I do.”
Leah smiled brightly.
“Then let's go there. Taemin. The place we ate at before.”
“That place?”
There was only one pasta place we'd been to around here.
The one that charged 42,000 won for a single plate of spaghetti.
“Yep. The atmosphere there is nice, isn't it? Hahaha.”
Suddenly thinking of Doah, I felt a surge of indignation.
My girlfriend gets jajangmyeon, but he's going to buy Leah a meal that costs several times more?
Of course, it was all the teacher's money, so I couldn't talk back, but I still felt a little bitter.
“This way!”
The teacher led the way, beaming.
Leah and I just followed behind him, matching his pace.
As the waiter filled our water glasses, the teacher ordered a whole spread of dishes whose names I didn't even recognize.
“The food here is great. It's the best Italian place in the neighborhood.”
“Ah... but this place looks quite expensive. Are you sure this is okay...?”
In response to Leah's worried comment, the teacher wagged his index finger.
Teacher. That's a gesture you can use with me because I'm your student.
Why are you doing that to Leah-ssi, who isn't your student?
“Please, eat comfortably. To be honest, as I mentioned in that award interview, I'm a huge fan of yours, Leah-ssi.”
“Thank you.”
Looking shy, Leah covered her mouth as she smiled.
“So, to be completely honest, the whole reason I even entered this contest was to write a song just for you, Leah-ssi.”
“Wow. Really?”
“I barely watch anyone else's streams.”
“I see. But the other members' streams are fun, too...! If anything, I'm probably the least entertaining one...”
“But you're an incredible singer, Leah-ssi.”
...Why am I even here?
Isn't this what it feels like to be on a blind date where the matchmaker refuses to leave?
The two of them were the ones talking.
I was like a reaction bot, laughing, nodding in agreement, and arranging the cutlery when the food arrived.
“Actually, I also really love the songs you've composed, Ashblock-nim.”
Picking at the greens in front of me with my fork, I chewed my food, thinking they were a match made in heaven.
I should come back here with Doah sometime.
“Oh! Really! Which songs, by any chance?”
“Um... they're some of your older ones... I bought and listened to the collaboration album you released a few years ago... and also...”
The teacher's past works, which even I didn't know much about.
So they were fans of each other.
How nice for them.
If they were closer in age and the teacher took a little better care of himself, I could even see them developing into a couple.
Of course, that timeline doesn't exist in this reality.
“Aww, Leah-ssi, you really know your music! Of course, I'll continue to be active, but you should look forward to this guy, too! He's Bitdam's next rising star!”
I haven't even signed the contract yet, and I'm already a rising star? Watashi?
“Ah... Taemin-ssi, you compose as well?”
“Ah. I haven't officially released anything, but this time...”
“Taemin's the one who made that song! Summer Records. He did such a good job with it that I snatched him up right after the contest ended.”
The teacher jumped in to brag about his student before I could even explain.
Since it was something that would come up anyway when we worked on my songs in the future, I just smiled and let it go.
“Taemin...ssi... did...?”
Leah's dark black eyes stared straight at me.