Is It Okay to Stay Like This a Little Longer?
Baek Yerin's final song had come to an end.
In a typical concert, the crowd would have been roaring for an encore, desperate for one more glimpse of the stage.
But the atmosphere inside the venue was profoundly solemn.
Even though everyone knew the performance was over, there wasn't a single cheer, not even the slightest sound.
They were all lost in a heavy sadness after listening to Baek Yerin's song. It was the kind that tightened your chest until it ached.
Only then did the audience truly understand.
Why they had fallen in love with the singer named Baek Yerin.
How could anyone not love a singer whose voice moved the heart like this and delivered such warm songs?
And the person who felt the greatest pride in that fact was smiling faintly.
It was Ryu Won.
He gazed at Baek Yerin standing on stage.
She had poured out every last piece of herself, and for some reason she was looking in his direction with tears streaming down her face. At the same time, she was smiling.
Facing that contradictory expression, Ryu Won felt a small sense of relief.
He always remembered the way Baek Yerin smiled brightly in front of her fans.
He thought that sight was truly beautiful.
Any worries, any sadness, any regrets seemed to melt away on their own when met with that smile.
But knowing that the same Baek Yerin had been suffering from depression all along made Ryu Won's chest feel tight.
What had burdened you so much? What had pushed you that far?
Since he wasn't the one living her life, Ryu Won couldn't know.
He couldn't even dare to guess, but after hearing the worries she had finally confessed, he understood part of it.
Baek Yerin had always carried feelings of guilt toward her mother. And perhaps, in their previous life, she had never been able to express those feelings properly.
He thought so because of where she had lived.
In the previous timeline, she had stayed in that same old villa where she once lived with her mother.
Even after her mother passed away and she was left alone. Even after she became known as a national singer.
All by herself, in loneliness, continuing on...
Maybe she simply couldn't leave.
The guilt toward her mother, the remorse of never having conveyed her true heart. Perhaps those emotions had solidified inside her as 'regret' and kept her rooted to that place.
Well... it wasn't certain.
It wasn't certain, but when he looked at Baek Yerin's tearful smile, all he could feel was relief.
So please.
So you don't have to experience the same regrets I did.
It was while Ryu Won was thinking this that a voice called out to him.
"Ryu Won."
He slowly turned his head and met her eyes.
Lee Yeon-hui, Baek Yerin's mother, was looking at him with eyes full of gratitude.
"Thank you. From the beginning to the end, I only feel gratitude toward you."
Ryu Won simply smiled gently and answered.
"If today's concert can remain a good memory for both you and Yerin, then I'm completely satisfied. So there's no need for thanks."
At his completely natural response, Lee Yeon-hui smiled in exactly the same way.
Yes... It's because you're that kind of boy that Yerin fell for you.
Lee Yeon-hui turned her gaze back toward the stage.
And then.
"I wanted to be sure to tell all of you who came to my concert today how grateful I am. I hope you can smile together with the people you love, and with that, I will take my leave now. Thank you!"
Baek Yerin's first concert came to a successful close, leaving the audience with deep, lingering emotions.
......Meanwhile.
"Thank you for all your hard work!"
Backstage after the concert had ended.
Baek Yerin bowed her head to every staff member who passed by, offering her thanks.
She realized all over again just how many people had helped her stand on that concert stage and deliver her performance.
"You did great."
At that moment, Kang Beom-jun approached her side and spoke.
"You worked hard too, sir."
"Well... you worked the hardest. So go home and rest quickly. It looks like you have a lot to talk about with the person waiting over there."
With those words, Kang Beom-jun looked past Baek Yerin.
She also heard the sound of footsteps approaching from the direction of his gaze.
She turned her head toward the sound.
There, walking alongside her manager Lee Ha-ri, was a woman.
The person who was more precious to Baek Yerin than anyone else.
"Mom!"
Baek Yerin ran to Lee Yeon-hui and threw herself into her arms.
It was truly...
a warm and comforting embrace.
I, riding in my mom's car, looked up at the sky.
Thick dark clouds had been gathering, and from morning onward thunder had begun to rumble.
Then, as if a hole had been punched through the heavens, rain began pouring down.
"The weather is really..."
"Not great, huh?"
"Yeah. All the autumn rain at once."
It was the day of Baek Yerin's first concert.
Three whole months had already flown by in the blink of an eye since then.
The sweltering summer had passed in an instant, and before anyone realized it, autumn had arrived.
Of course, I was still on summer break. Well... with only four days left now.
Anyway, the song Your Photo that had been unveiled at Baek Yerin's concert that day received tremendous praise from people.
Critics called it a song beyond evaluation, and the live video uploaded to YouTube was flooded with a constant stream of comments from countless viewers.
It made sense. After all, there was a saying that went something like this:
Good songs receive critiques about the music itself, but masterpieces inspire people to leave behind their own stories.
Even now, people recalling their own memories with family were probably leaving comments nonstop, driving the view count higher and higher.
For reference, Your Photo was released as a digital single that wasn't available in physical form, and it was still locked in a fierce battle with Rewind for the top spot on the charts.
After that day, Baek Yerin became incredibly busy.
Advertisements, photo shoots, broadcasts, fan meetings, university festivals, and more.
A rookie who had debuted less than a year ago had gained the recognition of a national singer and was walking a golden path.
Well, it was only natural.
Her path had been nothing short of spectacular, after all.
From her debut to releasing her third album, delivering an all-time legendary stage on Music Save, and turning her first concert venue into an ocean of tears.
Fortunately, even with her packed schedule, Baek Yerin still managed to make time for her mother, Lee Yeon-hui.
After that day their mother-daughter bond had grown even stronger, so they must have created many more happy memories that Ryu Won didn't know about.
So that when the moment of farewell came, no regrets would remain...
"Ryu Won, you're here. And hello again, ma'am."
When we visited the funeral home to pay our respects, a familiar face greeted us.
It was Kang Beom-jun.
He stood at the entrance to the funeral hall wearing a black suit.
"Thank you for everything. I heard RT Entertainment helped a lot with the arrangements."
"It's only natural. Go on inside quickly. Someone's been waiting for you."
I nodded and stepped into the viewing room.
There, my eyes naturally met those of the girl standing beside the portrait of a woman smiling brightly.
......Baek Yerin.
She offered me a faint, bittersweet smile.
.
.
.
Baek Yerin had no other relatives or family members.
Perhaps that was why.
"The aunt from earlier left..."
"She had an urgent matter. So I told her to go ahead."
Ryu Won stayed by her side as she kept watch over the funeral hall alone.
He intended to remain with her for the full three days until the funeral concluded.
At one point, Baek Yerin naturally rested her head on Ryu Won's shoulder and spoke.
"If you keep staying right by my side like this, won't the people who come here start wondering who you are?"
"Let them wonder. The CEO will handle that part just fine."
"...I see."
Baek Yerin knew.
She knew he was saying things he didn't truly mean, all for her sake right now.
She turned her gaze back toward the photo of Lee Yeon-hui.
"Now that I think about it, my mom talked about you so much... She really must have liked you."
"It's an honor."
At Ryu Won's shameless reply, a faint smile had already formed on Baek Yerin's lips.
She was still incredibly sad about her mother's death.
She still couldn't fully believe it had happened.
But.
"...You know, I cried so much at my dad's funeral. But in the end, it was because I still had my precious mom that I managed to stop. It's the same now. Even though just a little while ago I was holding back tears because it felt like they'd spill over... now it feels a little better."
"......"
"So... is it okay to stay like this just a little longer?"
Ryu Won didn't answer Baek Yerin's question.
There was no option to refuse in a moment like this.
And Baek Yerin, still resting her head on his shoulder, slowly closed her eyes.
A parent's death carves a massive hole in your heart and in the corner of your memories.
Even so, Baek Yerin would keep living.
Because the person who had now become the most precious to her, the one who could fill that hole, was staying right by her side.
When she was young, Baek Yerin had been nothing like her current image. She had been an incredibly greedy child, the type who wouldn't be satisfied until she obtained whatever she wanted.
But after her father died in the line of duty and she was forced to grow up too soon, she had stopped showing that side of herself entirely.
Yet perhaps...
The time for such false pretenses had finally come to an end.
"Where did my summer vacation disappear to?"
"Don't ask me. Mine vanished in the blink of an eye too."
During the opening ceremony, Kim Tae-hwan, sitting in front of me, let out a deep sigh.
That day was perfectly ordinary, aside from the fact that summer break had ended and we were back at school after so long.
The same familiar faces of friends, the same kind of classes, just waiting for the final bell.
But after school, something far from ordinary was waiting for me.
Normally, if I had no business at RT Entertainment, I would head straight home.
The problem was that the moment I stepped inside the house, someone was there to greet me with a bright, welcoming face.
Honestly, at first I thought I was dreaming.
"You're back?"
The instant I heard that now-familiar voice, I knew it was real.
Baek Yerin.
For some reason, she was standing in our house.
Wearing an apron over her school uniform...
With the same bright smile she always wore.