Chapter 183: As If It Never Happened.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 183: As If It Never Happened.
“Uh… why?”
Doah had just asked the same question, but she asked again.
She questioned Leah, sounding a little persistent.
“Ah… I just have a few things I wanted to ask you privately.”
Hello…? Leah…?
But Leah was a fortress.
She seemed to have no intention of revealing her business to Luka.
I guess that was possible.
Sure, an artist might want a private consultation with their producer about a song.
But for me, Doah's current boyfriend, this was the worst possible scenario.
I had just said out loud how glad I was that we finished earlier than planned, so it would be awkward for me to make an excuse about being busy and having to leave.
And honestly, I was curious what it was about.
What did she want to talk about so badly that she had to be this secretive…
“Hmph~ Is that so?”
Doah squinted and glanced over at me.
“Alright. Take your time and talk. I'll be on the first floor.”
“Okay. I'll be right down.”
At least Luka-tan didn't fly off the handle or suddenly reveal that I was her boyfriend.
She turned and left the studio without another word, leaving just the two of us. Leah and me.
“Uh… so… Leah-ssi. What was it you wanted to talk to me about…?”
“Ah. Well, it's nothing that serious.”
If it wasn't serious, it would've been nice if you'd just said it in front of Doah.
I was already dreading Luka-tan's interrogation.
“Um… if you're not satisfied with today's recording, it's okay to ask me to come back and record again.”
“What? But I thought today's recording was more than enough.”
I was planning to just finalize it with this version.
“You might listen to it again and find a part you don't like.”
Her overly excellent after-sales service filled me with a sense of dread.
A chill ran down my spine.
I knew this feeling well.
No, it would be stranger if I didn't.
Making up an excuse to talk when there's no real reason… especially when girls do it to me.
“…I see.”
I closed my eyes and calmly collected my thoughts.
Once I'd sized up the situation, there was only one thing to do.
But I couldn't use such a rude method anymore.
She was a collaborator, a member of Doah's team.
A member of CLOSER.
“In that case, if I need anything, I'll contact you through the company.”
“Ah… no, it's fine. I'll give you my number.”
Instead of offering my phone, I handed her the notepad and pen on the table.
“You can leave it here, and I'll keep it for reference.”
“Ah. Okay!”
The round, bubbly handwriting typical of girls appeared on the notepad.
A small heart was drawn above the name 'Leah'.
I let out a short sigh, hidden from her view, then put on a bright smile.
“Well then, get home safely. I'll work hard to prepare the track.”
“Thank you. Please… call me if you need anything…?”
For some reason, as Leah said her goodbyes, she looked so much like Doah on the day she first confessed to me.
“Of course.”
Though that's probably never going to happen.
After Leah left and I confirmed the studio door was closed, I folded the note with her number into a small paper airplane.
“As if nothing happened.”
It was best to just pretend nothing had happened at all.
“Grrrrmble…”
Seriously, what's taking Leah so long?
It's been five minutes already!
And if she had something to say, why not just say it in front of me? What was so ‘pri-vate’ about it?
Feeling thoroughly annoyed, I kicked at an innocent streetlight, muttering, “Hmph, hmph.”
“Luka!”
A husky voice called from behind me.
I turned to see Leah's smiling face.
“Oh, you're done already?”
“Ah, I told you it was nothing.”
“If it was nothing, I could have just stayed.”
“It was just about my song, and I was embarrassed.”
Ssssp… Hmmm…
Is she really telling the truth?
You just wait, Han Taemin.
I'm going to start my cross-examination right away.
If Leah's number is saved on Oppa's phone… I'll… I'll…
“…Luka, what are you doing?”
Leah grabbed my shoulder as I was leaning against a telephone pole, shaking my head furiously.
“I was just imagining CLOSER debuting as a heavy metal band.”
“Luka, I'm surprised. I didn't know you liked that kind of stuff.”
…No. I actually don't know anything about it.
Since it felt like a waste to part ways right after meeting up, we decided to go to a nearby cafe for coffee.
“So, Luka, you've met everyone except Jennifer unnie, then?”
“Right? Jennifer unnie is just too far away.”
“I wonder why Clover unnie didn't contact me when she came to Seoul. I'm a little hurt.”
“That's because…”
What happened when I met Clover unnie was a secret, so I could only repeat that we should all hang out together next time.
“Aah~ I'm so jealous, Leah-tan! You're so good at singing.”
I took a long sip of my coffee and spoke in my Luka voice, full of nasal tones.
“Hey, from what I saw today, you were better.”
“You know it's kinda humiliating to be treated like that, right?”
“What can we do? This is how we make a living.”
Instinctively slipping into playful role-play was a basic skill and habit for a VTuber.
“Still, you couldn't do any of that last year. You must have gotten a lot more comfortable now.”
Leah, who used to get flustered and stumble over her words when viewers teased her on stream, seemed much more accustomed to internet broadcasting culture than before.
“Ah… well… I monitored what the other members were doing, and I kept up with the memes the viewers taught me, and I guess I just… changed.”
“Aww, if you start cracking better jokes than me, what am I supposed to do for a living? Sob sob.”
As I pretended to cry, Leah waved her hand as if to say I was hopeless.
“Hey, I still think I have a long way to go compared to you or Murin. My reflexes are slow. The viewers are always teasing me, saying I've lost my touch.”
“You can't lose something you never had.”
“…See? This is what I mean.”
I thought it might be a little awkward meeting Leah in person, but once we sat down and started talking, I didn't feel that way at all.
From memories of the audition to our recent album work, two hours flew by while we just sat and talked.
“Good luck with your stream later.”
“Yeah, you too.”
“Do you think it's okay to mention on stream that we recorded together today?”
“Hmm… it should be fine as long as we check with Manager unnie first.”
“Okay, then. I'll ask in the group chat.”
Sharing stories about the members was content that viewers in any chat room loved.
Especially if you told a funny episode, it would always get clipped and spread far and wide across the internet.
“Well, I have to go catch my bus. You said you're taking the subway, right?”
As Leah was about to cross the street, I waved for her to go on ahead.
A bus must have arrived just then, as Leah started running toward the stop.
I watched her jet-black bob swing back and forth until she was out of sight, then tilted my head.
“Aah… seriously… if it weren't for what happened with Taemin Oppa, it would have been a perfect day.”
Now, it was time to go uncover the truth.
I wonder if Oppa's left work yet.
I took out my phone and called my boyfriend right away.
[Hello?]
[Yeah, Oppa.]
[Oh. Are you home?]
[No, I'm still near your company.]
[What? You haven't left yet?]
[Yeah. I was just having coffee with Leah.]
[Oh, really? I think I'll be leaving soon. Want to go home together?]
[Okay. I'll head back over there.]
I retraced my steps and waited for him in front of his building.
“Doah!”
Oppa spotted me and ran over.
I thought he looked a little cool, smiling brightly as he approached, but I had to hold it in.
Because today, I had some questions for him.
“Halt!”
“Huh?”
I stopped him in his tracks as if I were a wizard casting a spell.
“What did you do with Leah!”
“What do you mean, 'do'? We just talked.”
“You think I don't know that? What did you talk about… pri-vate-ly, Lucario-ssi?”
“She said she'd re-record if there were any parts of the song I wasn't happy with.”
“…That's it?”
That's weird. If that's all it was, she could have just said it in front of me.
My suspicions not yet erased, I pointed my index finger at his stomach like a spear.
“If you lie, I'll stab you with this.”
“If I get stabbed and die, your song dies with me.”
His response was so absurd that a chuckle escaped my lips.
“What? Was that really it?”
“Yeah. I guess she just wasn't very confident in her singing. Even though she did a great job.”
What a funny girl. To hit those high notes so perfectly and still be anxious about it.
This makes me, the one who didn't even mention re-recording, feel embarrassed!
“I… I can re-record too, if you need me to.”
“You were going to have to anyway.”
“…Huh?”
Oppa pinched my cheek and stretched it.
“I listened to it again, and I think you'll need to redo the last part.”
“Bwut you shaid it wash fine befowre.”
He loves stretching my cheeks so much, I was worried they wouldn't survive.
“Yeah. I listened again, and it won't do.”
“Jeez. You should have told me then.”
“But you probably won't have to come all the way here to do it.”
And so, we sat side-by-side on the subway and returned home safely.