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# Chapter 3. The Gift Given by God (3)
A man and woman in their mid-thirties entered, but they paused for a moment when they saw Yoon Hyunseong playing the guitar.
They seemed sorry that their arrival had interrupted his performance.
Even so, Hyunseong looked at them briefly before continuing to play.
Right now.
It was time to comfort the customer who had arrived before them, the one filled with sorrow.
The guitar performance continued.
Guitar playing techniques can be broadly divided into strumming, arpeggio or fingerpicking, skipping, and palm muting.
What Hyunseong was using now was a skill that cleverly combined arpeggio and skipping to maximize the lyrical quality of the music.
As Yoon Hyunseong began playing, the man and woman in their mid-thirties sat down at the spot closest to the entrance, and Yoon Taehyeok, who had gone into the kitchen, appeared again.
Yoon Taehyeok's eyes had grown almost comically wide because his son's guitar skills far exceeded anything he had imagined.
The guitar performance was enough to make one's chest tighten and naturally cause one's eyes to close, and Yoon Taehyeok could not take his eyes off his son.
The fact that he had raised his son for twenty-five years without knowing that he possessed such guitar skills meant that he had been that inattentive to his son.
“This is unbelievable. If my wife had seen this, she would've fainted.”
Yoon Taehyeok muttered softly as he listened to the guitar melody his son was producing.
It was beautiful.
He himself knew quite a bit about the guitar, but the elegance of the melody Yoon Hyunseong created, his gentle touch, and his control over the intensity were enough to leave him beyond impressed.
Then, as he listened to the guitar melody, he tilted his head.
He had played guitar for a long time himself, so he was familiar with almost every song worth knowing.
From pop songs to Korean songs, there were very few songs he didn't know.
But the melody his son was playing now was something he had never heard before.
The eyes of all five people in the café naturally turned toward the area where Hyunseong was sitting with the guitar.
Even the woman who had buried her face in her arms raised her head. The fact that she had lifted her eyes despite her sorrow showed just how beautiful the guitar melody was.
“This song is about the endless longing and love of people who love one another. I hope this song can heal your pain, even if only a little. Crying when you're sad is nothing to be ashamed of. You can cry as much as you need to.”
His gentle voice blended with the guitar melody and lingered throughout the café.
Then Yoon Hyunseong began to sing.
“The beautiful moments when we first met...”
How could it be described?
The moment the first verse of the song came from Hyunseong's lips, all five people stopped whatever they were doing.
There is no passion or rising pitch at the very beginning of a song.
Most songs begin with a simple melody and low notes, gradually building up the intensity before reaching a climax filled with the greatest possible emotion.
Hyunseong's song was no exception.
Even so, everyone was captivated from the very beginning because his voice in the introduction immediately carried the excitement of a first meeting in love.
As the song progressed, tears began falling again from the eyes of the woman who had stopped crying.
Not long after, the woman who had been sitting across from her pulled her into an embrace and cried along with her.
It wasn't only them.
The man in his mid-thirties sat there completely spellbound, listening to Yoon Hyunseong's singing. His eyes had become bloodshot, while the woman beside him was too busy wiping away her tears with a handkerchief to do anything else.
The only person who wasn't showing tears was Yoon Taehyeok.
As he listened to his son's singing, he repeatedly let out exclamations of admiration and astonishment, looking almost like someone who had lost his mind.
---
After finishing the song, Yoon Hyunseong quietly bowed his head in greeting before stepping down from the chair.
His throat wasn't in good condition because he hadn't sung for a long time.
He would have needed separate training to condition his vocal cords, but since he had no intention of becoming a singer, he had never done such training.
Even so, the memories from his previous life naturally guided his body, allowing him to display his singing skills to the fullest.
Although his pitch wavered because of his vocal cords and he couldn't fully produce the high notes he wanted, he successfully finished the song by appropriately using his chest voice and head voice.
In terms of singing technique, it was barely worth thirty points.
However, it was more than enough to move the five listeners.
He had never once sung half-heartedly.
He entrusted himself to the song and expressed it with all his emotions, which was why people in his previous life had called him a troubadour.
The female customers who had arrived first applauded him while crying.
That's a relief.
I felt lighter knowing that my song seemed to have comforted them to some degree.
I quietly went to the counter and picked up my bag, but Dad followed me, grabbed my shoulder, and pushed me toward the kitchen.
“You punk, you sing well. And you sing a lot. Why is that?”
“Huh?”
“Is it because you take after your dad?”
Yoon Hyunseong smiled as he looked at his father, who continued questioning him without letting go of his shoulder as if conducting an interrogation.
He was always like this.
Instead of asking directly, Dad always had a habit of speaking in riddles.
“Probably. Everyone around here knows how well Dad sings.”
“That's right. Especially Mr. Jeong next door. He's my fan.”
“Everyone else gets completely captivated whenever they hear you sing too.”
“That aside. When did you learn to play the guitar? You didn't just learn the basics, did you?”
“I told you. Don't you remember that I said I was in a classical guitar club for three years?”
“Oh, did you? I vaguely remember hearing something like that...”
“I should get going now.”
“You're leaving? After making such a commotion, you're just going to leave?”
“Mom told me to come home early because she's making bulgogi. She said her son has been looking a little run-down lately. Apparently my face looks tired and I've been lacking stamina.”
“That's unfair. Her husband is breaking his back running the shop alone, but all she thinks about is her son. Fine, go. Go and eat all the bulgogi you want and put on some weight.”
“Take care. Sir!”
Perhaps because I had only recently been discharged from the military, my hand automatically rose into a salute.
Of course, I was only joking.
Seeing Dad raise his hand in response because we had always been informal with each other, Yoon Hyunseong slung his bag over his shoulder.
Just then, among the customers in their thirties who had arrived late, the woman stopped him as he was about to leave.
“Excuse me, may I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Do you work here?”
“No. I'm the son of the owner over there.”
“Oh... I thought you were a singer who performed here. I was going to ask when your performances were, but I guess that's not the case.”
The woman looked disappointed.
But only for a moment. She immediately asked another question.
“What was the title of the song you just sang?”
“Endless Love.”
“Who sings it? I've never heard it before.”
“Actually, I composed the song myself.”
“Oh my, really? You actually composed it yourself?”
“Yes.”
“It was such a wonderful song. Has it been released yet?”
“No.”
“Then what should I do? I want to hear it again. Is there any way I can listen to it?”
“I'm sorry. I only made it as a hobby... Well, I'll be going now. Have a good time.”
Leaving the woman, who seemed to want to continue the conversation, behind, I walked out of the café.
One lie gives birth to another, eventually forcing you to tell an even bigger lie and creating shackles you can never escape from.
That was why Hyunseong left the café and hurried toward the bus stop.
For a moment, confusion washed over him, but he shook his head.
His determination not to sing and his desire to live freely. He didn't want today's incident to put a crack in either of them.
As soon as I entered the house, the savory smell filled the air.
Mom was in the kitchen. She came out while washing her hands, and the moment she saw Hyunseong, she immediately raised her voice.
It was true that his younger sisters' excessive cheerfulness came from their mother, but Mom vehemently denied it.
“I told you to come home quickly. Why are you so late?”
“I told you I was going to Dad's shop.”
“I was planning to have a cozy date with my handsome son for once, and this is how late you come home?”
“Is dinner ready?”
“Hurry up and wash up. Mom even prepared a bottle of wine today.”
“Why wine all of a sudden?”
“Wine is a basic part of a date. Do you think Mom would let it pass when I'm having a date alone with my son for the first time in ages?”
“Whoa!”
After putting my bag in my room, I went into the bathroom, washed up, and came out to find a feast laid out on the dining table.
There was bulgogi, my favorite rolled omelet, and all kinds of side dishes. It seemed a little excessive today.
From that point on, the two of us had our date while clinking wine glasses.
Mom brought up stories from my childhood, probably because of the wine.
“When I first gave birth to you, I was so surprised because you didn't cry. You were born a little earlier than normal, and I was so worried that something might be wrong with you. Goodness... Can a newborn baby really not cry?”
I suppose that was how it was.
Back then, I was completely out of it too.
“From the moment I gave birth to you, every moment was happy and enjoyable. You're my treasure.”
“Haha... Then is Mom a jewelry box? Since you always carry a treasure inside you.”
“Oh my, I like that. I'll be a jewelry box.”
Mom laughed heartily and gently stroked Hyunseong.
A mother's love for her son.
Although she had two daughters as well, Jeong Heeyeon's love for her son was so excessive that it often sparked rebellions from her daughters.
The dinner date with Mom continued for quite some time.
It seemed Jeong Heeyeon had chosen today specifically because she questioned Hyunseong closely about his time in the military, his university life after returning to school, and even his girlfriend.
I sincerely answered my mother's interrogation.
It felt like it had been a long time since I had seen Mom this happy.
Recently, I had witnessed my parents several times discussing something with serious expressions late into the night, as if there were some problem with Dad's shop.
Brrring—
The front door opened, and Dad and my younger sisters entered at the same time when the wine was almost gone.
10 p.m.
They had probably met in front of the house and come in together.
“Oh my, my dear wife really went all out today. You said you were having a date with our son, and you drank an entire bottle of wine?”
“Mom, what's going on? I guess you were happy because we weren't here?”
“Hey, I wanted bulgogi too. Did you leave some for me?”
“Is there any wine left? I should have a glass too.”
“Go wash up first. You girls too!”
“What about the bulgogi?”
It was absolute chaos.
With all three of them talking at once, I couldn't make sense of anything.
While Dad and my younger sisters washed up, Mom reheated the bulgogi she had left in the kitchen.
Afterward, the entire family gathered around the dining table again.
Of course.
Yoon Taehyeok, who had downed his wine in one gulp, got things started.
“Honey, today I finally realized at the shop that Hyunseong really is my son.”
“What are you talking about?”
“He sang at the shop today, and he was exactly like me. You know how well I sing.”
“Who says that?”
“Mr. Jeong next door... Anyway, Hyunseong sang, and all the customers were so moved that they shed tears.”
“Come on, Dad. That's too much of an exaggeration.”
The youngest daughter, Yoon Suhyun, immediately objected. Yoon Jeonghyeon, sitting beside her, raised her hand and gave her sister a high five.
Yoon Taehyeok's eyes lit up as he desperately began recounting everything that had happened at the café that day, determined to prove himself right.
“Hoho, Dad. Tell us the truth. What kind of day is today?”
“Dad, if he takes after you, it's obvious how his singing will be. Besides, with Oppa's personality, do you really think he'd just sing in front of other people?”
“Our son already has that face. If he can sing well too, that's going to be trouble. You're just lying to surprise your wife, aren't you?”
“Why don't any of you believe me? I'm telling you, it's true. If you don't believe me, just ask Hyunseong.”
“Oppa, is it true?”
I avoided Yoon Jeonghyeon's gaze as she stared straight at me, smacking her lips.
Then I turned my head and saw Mom glaring at me with narrowed, intimidating eyes.
This is awkward.
“Hey, Yoon Hyunseong. You'll have to prove Dad's innocence. Sing us a song!”