Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: A Drunken Muse
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“Whoa…”
Yi-na stared in fascination at the unconscious Isa-nim. I could have carried her up myself, but I called Yi-na, afraid of causing any unnecessary misunderstandings.
I'd considered many places to take the drunken Isa-nim other than the dorm, but a hotel or the office—neither was a good option.
From my perspective, having to worry about prying eyes, the dorm was the best choice.
“I'm going to carry her, so can you lock the car?”
“Okay.”
I handed Yi-na the keys and hoisted Isa-nim onto my back, pulling her arms over my shoulders. It was a good thing Isa-nim wasn't wearing a skirt. The thought that naturally came to mind was dizzying.
She drank so much I thought she could handle her liquor. If I'd known she was such a lightweight… well, even if I had, I wouldn't have had a reason to stop her.
Perhaps because of the 'Soldier's Spirit' trait, I didn't feel particularly tired, even after carrying Isa-nim up to the fourth floor.
“…Oppa, why did you do that?”
“Let's talk inside.”
Yi-na led me into a room with two bunk beds. Seeing Seul-bi passed out on the top bunk, Yi-na spoke.
“She's such a character. Seriously, why is she in my bed when she has her own?”
Seol-ah was nowhere to be seen, probably taking a shower.
“I'll be in the car. When Seol-ah is ready to listen to what I have to say, call me. I have a lot to say, too.”
[Seol-ah is confused.]
[Seol-ah's favorability and trust in you increase by +3.]
Suddenly? Was she eavesdropping on me?
*Click.*
The door opened, and Seol-ah, her hair still damp, emerged with a calm expression.
“…Say it now.”
Seol-ah, trying to act natural, headed to the living room. It seemed she'd realized her own outburst after some time had passed. She might even be internally kicking herself.
This wasn't going to be a short conversation, and sitting down together felt very awkward.
“Want a can of beer?”
***
The breakroom at JD Enter.
Lee Yoo-ah and Oh Ro-si chatted with intrigued expressions.
“A new member for Answer?”
“Yes. So for practice…”
“The song I'm working on right now is a project with Answer!”
“Really?”
Lee Yoo-ah's and Oh Ro-si's faces lit up.
Having found a connection, Ro-si and Yoo-ah quickly grew closer.
“I was so embarrassed in front of the dance teacher and the male trainee that I practiced like crazy.”
“Ugh, that's awful.”
Lee Yoo-ah, whose dancing talent was only slightly better than an average person's, shuddered at the revived memory of her own past.
“Yeah, yeah. After a warm shower, my body felt so relaxed, so I sat down for a moment.”
“Oh dear. You passed out?”
“Yes… When I woke up, it was already this late. I was scared to go home, so I just decided to practice more.”
“Your parents must have been worried.”
Ro-si hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“My parents are in Australia.”
“Are they on a trip?”
“No. I was born in Australia.”
Lee Yoo-ah, who had thought Ro-si's slightly indistinct pronunciation was cute, nodded.
“I passed an audition while traveling in Korea, so I dropped out of secondary college and came here.”
“…Middle school?”
“Yes.”
“So you live alone?”
Ro-si, reading the pity in Yoo-ah's expression, spoke up.
“…For now. My uncle and other relatives are in Korea, so it's okay.”
“Still, it must be a little lonely.”
“Juuust a little.”
Ro-si, feeling uncomfortable with Yoo-ah's expression, changed the subject.
“By the way, what's the genre of the mashup song?”
“Want to hear it?”
“Ah! Can I?”
“It's not finished, though.”
As Ro-si showed interest, Yoo-ah was pleased too. She'd been wanting to let someone hear the song she was putting together so well.
After cleaning up their trash, the two headed down to the studio on the first floor.
*Fwoosh.*
As the door opened, a faint smell of alcohol drifted out.
‘I guess they're okay with having a can of beer while working on a song…’
Ro-si felt a pang of envy toward Yoo-ah.
In the front of the dark engineer's room, a soft LED light above the monitor illuminated the console and master keyboard, like a spotlight on a grand piano during a concours.
“…So cool. It must be easy to focus here.”
Yoo-ah was pleased with Ro-si's reaction.
“Have a seat.”
Yoo-ah said as she woke the computer from sleep mode.
“Whoaa… This chair must be expensive, right? It feels like it molds right to my body.”
“Right? It's a Miller something? They said it costs two million won.”
“No wonder… it feels amazing.”
Yoo-ah suddenly looked as if she'd remembered something.
“Oops. The Daepyo-nim told me never to mention that, but I forgot.”
“Hmm… For some reason, that makes me feel good? I'll keep it a secret.”
Yoo-ah pressed the play button in the program. A version of the song, more polished than what Min-jun had heard, began to play.
The verse started calmly with an acoustic guitar.
“Is it pop?”
“Yeah.”
“…But what kind of guitar is this? It's not acoustic.”
“Ooh. Sharp, Ro-si. That's a MIDI track.”
“…A computer instrument?”
“Yep. Once it's finished, we'll have to fill it in one by one with a live session.”
“…That's amazing. For a computer, it sounds so real.”
“Speaking of which, should we try recording a short verse?”
Yoo-ah selected two empty tracks and hit the record button. A fine waveform began to trace across the screen.
“Just a second.”
Yoo-ah picked up a guitar and entered the recording booth, where the light was on. Wearing headphones, she positioned a condenser mic and a dynamic mic appropriately.
Ro-si could only watch, fascinated by Yoo-ah's actions.
♪♬
*Twing ding ding, thrum tak, thrum thrum tak.*
As Yoo-ah played the guitar, waveforms danced on the monitor like a beating heart.
“…So cool.”
Ro-si was in awe watching Yoo-ah record the guitar.
The short, 30-second recording finished, and the light went off. Yoo-ah returned, hit the stop button, and trimmed the unwanted parts of the waveform.
“Unni, you're so skilled…”
Yoo-ah smiled and aligned the track she had just played to the correct position.
“By the way, why do you use two mics?”
“Uh… hmm… How should I put it… When people listen to music, the sound doesn't just come from one direction, right? Some of it bounces off the ceiling, some off the back wall. Right! It's for the spatial feel.”
“Ah, I think I get what you mean!”
Both of them wore pleased expressions.
“It'll sound much better when it's officially recorded, so just keep that in mind for now, okay?”
The track played again.
♪♬
*Twing ding ding, thrum tak, thrum thrum tak.*
“Wow… it's really beautiful.”
But once you start, you just want to keep improving the quality. In the end, they recorded verses 1 and 2, the bridge, and the chorus.
The slightly off-beat timing, not perfectly synced with the other sessions, had a raw, live sensibility that was hard to find in a finished album.
“It's sweet, yet wistful. I love it.”
An excited Ro-si started grooving to the melody. Even without a specific vocal line, she hummed along effortlessly.
As a native speaker's pronunciation hit the lyrical points Yoo-ah had imagined, it started to feel like a real pop song.
‘Ro-si has quite a bit of talent, too. She can ad-lib like this?’
“!”
In that moment, Yoo-ah had a flash of inspiration, remembering what Min-jun had said.
‘Let's write the lyrics entirely in English and make it a real pop song. Since the Daepyo-nim studied abroad…’
But Yoo-ah wanted to avoid the Daepyo-nim's involvement. She was afraid he would change the lyrics into something weird.
“Ro-si!”
“Yes?”
“You're a native speaker, right?”
“I was born in Australia, so… of course…”
“And you speak Korean well, too?”
“My spelling is a little weak.”
“Spelling doesn't matter.”
Yoo-ah grabbed Ro-si's hands.
“Help me with something.”
“Me? With what?”
“I'll give you the Korean lyrics and a humming guide. Could you change them into English? If it goes well, I'll credit you as a co-lyricist.”
Ro-si was taken aback by Yoo-ah's sudden proposal. She had never even attempted to compose or write lyrics. For someone to offer her a share of the copyright was not something an ordinary person would do.
Logically, it would be far more profitable to just hire a freelancer for the job.
‘This unni… she's an amazing person.’
But she was afraid she would let her down.
“…I've never written lyrics before.”
“You can do it, Ro-si. You followed the rhythm perfectly even without a clear guide like a karaoke melody. Just give it a try. The English you were humming earlier was great!”
“…”
Seeing Ro-si hesitate, Yoo-ah continued.
“Besides, this song itself is a mashup project between Answer and me. The two teams becoming one. I think it would be really meaningful.”
Ro-si had vaguely thought about wanting to try composing or songwriting before, so she was about to cautiously accept.
*Creeak.*
“!”
“!”
A sudden noise from within the studio made both of them freeze.
*Knock, knock.*
A security team member's face appeared in the small window.
“Oh, you scared me.”
The door opened, and the security guard poked his head in.
“Is it just the two of you in here?”
“Yes?”
“You've been in here the whole time?”
“Yes…”
“Ah… I see. It's very late, so if you decide to leave, please be sure to let us know.”
The security guard inserted the theft and fire prevention card next to the door into his patrol checker.
*Click.*
“Okay. But we won't be leaving tonight.”
“Understood. You two work hard.”
“Yes, you too…”
The security guard closed the door and left.
“That was startling.”
“Tell me about it.”
“What were we talking about?”
“Um… the English lyrics.”
“Right. Let's do it together.”
“Okay, I'll give it a try then. You don't have to put my name as a writer, though. It's my first time, so I'm sure it'll be a total headache for you.”
The slang, spoken in a native English speaker's slightly awkward Korean, made Yoo-ah laugh.
“Heh. Ro-si, the way you talk is cute.”
“…Has my English accent not faded yet? I thought it was almost gone.”
Ro-si gave a wry smile.
“That's not what I mean. It's just… the phrase ‘total headache’ is such an intense expression, you know? But hearing someone as pretty as you say it so cutely was just funny for a moment.”
“Heehee.”
Ro-si smiled, a smile full of innocence and honesty. Yoo-ah was overjoyed, feeling like one of her biggest worries had just been solved.
“What a relief. I was actually really worried about it.”
“Why?”
“Because I didn't want to entrust it to the Daepyo-nim.”
“What's wrong with letting the Daepyo-nim handle it?”
“…It's just that… Our Daepyo-nim is too… cheesy.”
“Pfft! Ahahaha!”
As Ro-si laughed, Yoo-ah burst out laughing too. She felt happy that she could work through her troubles with someone else.
“You're right. You're right. It would be a shame to taint a song with this kind of vibe with… that.”
A strong bond formed between Ro-si and Yoo-ah, realizing they were both aiming for the same thing.
“Thanks to you, Unni, I get to try writing lyrics and even see the studio.”
“Is this your first time in here?”
“No, I've been in once before, but I was so nervous I could only focus on what the Head PD was saying. I think it was the same for all the other girls who came in with me.”
“Heh… Our Daepyo-nim does have a tendency for TMI.”
“Right? I was so surprised. A story he started in here lasted all the way to the restaurant out front.”
“…Really? Wow…”
“…But Unni, have you been… drinking?”
“No?”
Ro-si and Yoo-ah looked at each other as the smell of alcohol suddenly grew stronger.
“I!”
A man's voice suddenly rang out.
“Kyaa!”
Park Jae-yong's face, his hair squashed sideways, popped up between Yoo-ah and Ro-si.
“Have never once said anything useless. You're all misunderstanding me. It's because you're young. When you get to be my age…”
With his matted hair and the reek of alcohol every time he opened his mouth, Park Jae-yong's drab, disheveled appearance was the spitting image of a beggar from half a century ago.