Chapter 40
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Stimulus (1)
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Ye-rim Concert Hall, second floor.
Myeong Woo-bin, leaning his arms on the railing, stared intently at Kwon Do-hyun descending from the stage.
"It's so good, what do I do...!"
"Hey, keep it down...!"
The nearby female student's constant bursts of laughter were annoying, but that wasn't what mattered right now.
'Kwon Do-hyun...'
He idolized his father.
The father who delivered performances far greater than any pianist in the world.
Myeong Woo-bin sought to absorb everything about his father.
His playing posture, pedal usage, touch strength, rubato dynamics, how he interpreted scores, even his performance habits.
He prided himself on working harder than anyone, grinding away until his bones ached. And the results always came back as the label of genius.
Even when massive walls named Baek Ji-ho and Lee Ha-yeon suddenly blocked his path, his resolve didn't break.
Because the fingers inherited from the world's greatest pianist were a weapon only he possessed.
Three years later, at Ye-rim Arts High School.
Kwon Do-hyun began to stand out in Myeong Woo-bin's eyes.
'I thought Seol Yu-jin was enough of an idiot...'
To think there was another guy with the exact same, or maybe even more extreme, approach to performance as Seol Yu-jin.
But there was no need to dwell deeply. He'd already proven his superiority over Seol Yu-jin with skill.
He figured it'd be the same with Kwon Do-hyun. Besides, the guy seemed like a total novice who hadn't even properly learned piano.
[Dad: It's the second exam today, right? I hope you keep steadily improving without obsessing over rankings. I'm cheering for you from afar.]
Myeong Woo-bin let out a quiet sigh as he stared at his phone.
That was Kwon Do-hyun, someone he'd dismissed entirely. But after hearing that last performance, he had no clue what score he'd get.
After taking exams at an arts school multiple times, you develop a sense for it. This level of playing would score about this much.
'Kwon Do-hyun... Definitely top ranks.'
It wasn't an incomprehensible result. But the process? That he couldn't accept.
Was this really possible? Back at entrance exams, his playing was barely passable, hard even to listen to...
He'd said he had zero concerto experience, and as a public middle school grad, it probably wasn't a total lie.
'Can't just ask him directly.'
No matter how curious, there was such a thing as pride. He'd look desperate.
As Myeong Woo-bin turned to leave the hall, he spotted Baek Ji-ho slowly descending the stairs. Baek Ji-ho's assigned piece was Beethoven—why had he stuck around this long?
"Baek Ji-ho."
Myeong Woo-bin called out, and Baek Ji-ho turned around along with his guiding friend.
"Oh, it's Woo-bin."
"You just came out after watching Kwon Do-hyun too?"
"Yeah. Everyone probably did. It's intriguing, right?"
Myeong Woo-bin quickened his pace to close the gap, frowning slightly.
"Everyone? How many people could possibly care about him."
"Haha, aren't you coming out after hearing Do-hyun play too, Woo-bin?"
Caught off guard, Myeong Woo-bin smacked his lips without retorting.
"Wanna walk together?"
"Your steps are so slow."
"Why? Weather's nice. I think of slow steps as a blessing on days like this."
Baek Ji-ho glanced up at the sky. The deep blue of mid-spring felt richer than usual.
'Come to think of it...'
Suddenly, Myeong Woo-bin remembered.
From the first time he'd met Baek Ji-ho up to now, Baek Ji-ho had never once complained about his disability.
Not even once.
On the contrary, he'd grown explosively over time, making the disability seem irrelevant. It might seem out of nowhere now, but Myeong Woo-bin, who'd always found it odd, couldn't muster any fitting words.
"Curious, right?"
On the way to the main building, Baek Ji-ho spoke first.
"About what."
"Do-hyun. Teacher Choi Je-hun, Ha-yeon... why everyone's so worked up."
Myeong Woo-bin nodded silently.
"I've met your dad a few times."
"He comes to school events occasionally."
"We even went to concerts together a few times—forgot already?"
"...Don't bring that up."
"Ahaha, did you cry that one time?"
"Ugh, I said don't."
Baek Ji-ho continued as Myeong Woo-bin grimaced and clicked his tongue in embarrassment.
"Your dad hasn't said anything special lately?"
"Not really. He's busy with tours, hardly calls."
"Hmm... Like, don't rely on him too much?"
Baek Ji-ho's casual tone made Myeong Woo-bin's brow twitch.
He really had. Especially from 2nd and 3rd year middle school, the nuance had grown frequent.
'Maybe try finding other teachers besides me...'
Back then, he'd brushed it off. Busy schedule, stamina issues—just passing comments, he hoped.
"But how'd you...?"
"Oh, we veered off from Do-hyun talk."
Baek Ji-ho chuckled lowly, ignoring Myeong Woo-bin's bewildered look.
"Think of it this way."
Baek Ji-ho paused, humming thoughtfully.
"Some people hear a piece and can play it back exactly. Super accurately."
"And?"
"Now, what if that person had heard hundreds, thousands... tens of thousands of pieces?"
Myeong Woo-bin stared at the grinning Baek Ji-ho, then tsked shortly.
"You saying Kwon Do-hyun's like that?"
"Who knows. Just the vibe I got."
Seemed like mere speculation; Baek Ji-ho didn't know the guy's full background either.
"True freedom unbound by molds only comes after mastering all the clichéd, rigid stuff."
"Not a blank slate?"
"Creating something from nothing doesn't happen in reality. Everyone starts with imitation."
Myeong Woo-bin ruffled his hair irritably. His mind was a mess.
"Say his ears are exceptional, like you claim. But at our age? Tens of thousands of pieces? Physically impossible."
"Exactly why I'm stumped too. How'd he do it?"
Baek Ji-ho, tapping his cane slowly, suddenly stopped.
He fixed his gaze forward and spoke.
"Woo-bin."
"Yeah."
"When you hear others play, ever think, 'Why do they play it like that? It'd be better this way...'?"
Myeong Woo-bin pondered, about to speak as something clicked—
"Besides basics like missed notes or technique."
"..."
Deep in thought again, Myeong Woo-bin slowly looked up.
"Doesn't seem like it."
Baek Ji-ho smiled faintly up at his slightly forlorn face.
"Maybe look for that from now on? Sorry if that's arrogant, haha."
"Enough."
Baek Ji-ho glanced at the clock tower in the vast garden center, then said, "Oops."
"Don't mind me, go ahead. Teacher won't say anything if I'm late."
"Got it. Don't trip."
"Sang-yoon's here, it'll be fine. Thanks for worrying."
Myeong Woo-bin left Baek Ji-ho behind and walked on.
He calmly replayed their conversation.
Kwon Do-hyun, the weather, Dad, Dad's words... Keywords whizzed by like oncoming cars.
'A guy who can replicate a piece perfectly after one listen, having absorbed thousands, tens of thousands...'
One sentence flashed in Myeong Woo-bin's mind.
"...That's fucking impressive."
Something's off.
The performance seemed flawless. The reactions from the audience, teachers, orchestra members confirmed it.
'So... why can't I remember the performance clearly?'
He vaguely recalled fiercely matching the orchestra, pounding keys, counting beats solidly. Like a midsummer night's dream, hazy. Too focused?
'Whatever, it was satisfying! Who cares.'
The guys in the seats all had dazed faces after it ended. Felt good; he kept chuckling.
"Good work. Great playing."
"You hadn't left? Thanks to you, I guess. Cheers!"
After greeting the Piano Department friend who'd just finished, he crossed his arms.
Next up was Kim Ju-hee as third performer. Instead of returning to seats, he watched from near the stage exit.
The afterglow wouldn't fade; he'd stomped around until time flew. Decided to stay and watch.
"Whoa... what."
Pure admiration slipped out at the first piano notes.
Kim Ju-hee was playing smoothly, way more stable than practice.
'Even as it plaintively descends, it gently envelops... something like that.'
Close to the cozy tone she'd aimed for in the 1st evaluation.
Unlike his intense whip-crack to the orchestra, her timings gently welcomed each instrument—impressive.
'Did Kim Ju-hee have some mindset shift in this short time?'
Hard to change much from a bit of morning practice. Lately, he'd focused on orchestra handling, hadn't checked her playing.
'No idea, but she's killing it. Piano's best when you dive deep inside and let it all out.'
With a clean finish, she bowed to applause. Her shoulders heaved shortly—must've drained her stamina.
"Kim Ju-hee!"
He waved as she exited, trembling chest calming, face anxious.
"...Class rep, why're you here?"
Her eyes widened spotting him. He smirked, high-fiving her still-dazed self.
"To watch you play."
"What... you scared me."
"Why so good today? You were solid last time too—strong in the moment?"
She fanned her flushed face, sighing softly.
"Sometimes you're so perceptive, other times totally oblivious."
She eyed him slyly, still fanning.
What'd that mean? He'd meant her performance.
"What, I'm not oblivious."
"Idiot, dummy."
Didn't feel great hearing "dummy" from a dummy.
Kim Ju-hee chuckled lightly and walked ahead briskly.
"Gonna check on Ye-ri. Ha-yeon and Seong-hyuk are still in seats, I think!"
"Ah, Seo Ye-ri..."
No time to stop her; she was gone. Meeting Seo Ye-ri now would shock her big time.
'She'll find out eventually. At least her nerves held pre-performance.'
Counted that as a win.
"Ugh, so frustrating."
"..."
"You need some sense of urgency."
"Sorry."
School was quiet, but around me it was noisy.
"Lucky it's the concerto exam. Pull that in practicals and you'd get slammed with deductions, no mercy."
"My bad. How many times I gotta say it."
"Don't wanna see good scores tank. Aren't you aiming for that outstanding student recital or whatever?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Lee Seong-hyuk, nagging all the way from concert hall to main building, elbowed me.
"Still, best performance so far today. 101 wouldn't surprise me."
"I was satisfied too? But can't recall how I played."
"Must've been super focused. Looked that way."
Lee Ha-yeon left after Kim Ju-hee's turn, so it was just me and Lee Seong-hyuk.
Quick face-check with homeroom teacher and day's done—exam day perk.
Reason for the hassle? School bureaucracy, probably.
"Oh."
Running into exhausted-looking Lee Hyo-seong in the hall.
Come to think, hadn't greeted orchestra section mates post-exam. Swing by Music Class tomorrow?
"It's Do-hyun."
Lee Hyo-seong pointed at me with his index finger.
"Not forgetting my name anymore?"
"You played so I can't forget. What'm I supposed to do."
He rolled his eyes diagonally, then said,
"...Thanks. Yesterday and today."
"No need. Just doing our parts."
"Sang-woo hates admitting it, but says you helped big time. Believe it or not."
"Tell him good work too."
"Yeah. You're alright, kid."
"Took you this long?"
He patted my shoulder, waved, and left.
Lee Seong-hyuk's eyes sparkled characteristically.
"Hey, that's Lee Hyo-seong, right? He was good."
"Yeah, trumpet second chair."
"As expected, Lee Hyo-seong to Kim Ga-eul..."
I sighed shallowly at Lee Seong-hyuk whipping out notepad and pen from his back pocket.
Homeroom check done, straight to the canteen—lunchtime long gone.
"Seong-hyuk, what after eating?"
"Dunno, probably grab the video and watch at dorm."
"Lee Ha-yeon?"
"No idea."
Bought bread, snacks, milk, back to home base. Big lounge where kids eat, chill, whatever.
Bit into pizza bread, thinking.
'Kim Ju-hee'll be busy consoling Seo Ye-ri, this guy's watching exam vid...'
Nothing to do. No one to hang with. Post-exam, practice rooms'd be empty?
"Gonna practice."
"Makes me wanna puke."
"Practice means play."
"Stop."
Mid-meal, a girl flung open the home base door.
Kim Ga-eul, panting heavily.
"Oh, Ga-eul."
Raised hand happily; she rushed over, stomping.
"Do-hyun! Where were you? Searched everywhere—even your class!"
"Uh, what's up? Good work today."
Took her phone, punched in my number naturally.
Kim Ga-eul, catching breath, fanned her shirt collar.
"Anyway, we're doing afterparty tonight? Orchestra crew. Come! Eat good stuff."
Afterparty. Pretty serious. How many were we?
'Under twenty...'
Imagined the whole group mobbing the street, giggling away. Kyahaha, hahaha, hoho.
Ah, headache already.
'People I'm close to... Kim Ju-hee, Kim Ga-eul maybe.'
Kim Ju-hee obviously no. Then only Kim Ga-eul?
'Loner confirmed.'
Not into silent corner-munching at a huge table.
Stoic face, I cut it off.
"Don't know many, hate crowds. Pass."
"Ehh... Would be fun if you came!"
Kim Ga-eul circled me, begging. Waving her off hard, my pocket buzzed.
Text from senior Lee Jin-seong.
[Jin-seong sunbae: Do-hyun, to celebrate exam end, grub on me! Hanwoo, lol. Repay last time. Reply when free~]
'Hanwoo on me lol'
Hanwoo.
Hanwoo...
"Can't come? Huh?"
"Ga-eul."
"Coming?!"
"Whatcha eating?"
"Um... meat? Pork? Gotta go cheap, lots of us!"
"Nope."
Kim Ga-eul's face fell instantly.
"...Y-You traitor!"