Chapter 15
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Aftermath
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The dazzling end of the broadcast had passed, leaving only the cold glow of the monitor in the narrow, dim studio apartment.
A plump finger roughly scrolled down the mouse wheel. The screen was filled with news of Glassy Sky topping the charts and comments praising Seo Siyeon. Im Jihye bit her lip until it bled.
"Just nine years old..."
Jihye glanced at the battered acoustic guitar in the corner of her room.
At some point, her life had become consumed by music.
Throughout her three years of high school, she'd trained at one of the top entertainment agencies in the country. She'd made it to the debut lineup but was cut at the last moment for her visuals and age.
She'd entered music college late, but carving out a place as a solo artist was a distant, treacherous path.
No matter how many tracks she released, no one listened, and fans were like a mirage—there one moment, gone the next.
Years had passed chasing that musical mirage with guide recordings and part-time jobs, and now she was in her mid-to-late twenties.
The weight gain from stress-eating after repeated failures was just the icing on the cake.
-If you're a musician, prove it on stage.
Siyeon's words from the TV stabbed into her heart like a dagger.
"What do you know? Do you know what it's like to cry in front of a practice room mirror for ten years?"
Did that brat even understand that for some people, even getting on stage wasn't allowed?
Singer Star was her last challenge, her final shot.
A fog of inferiority and hatred clouded Jihye's eyes.
She knew better than anyone how good Seo Siyeon's singing was.
Having poured over a decade into music—from trainee days to music college—Siyeon's compositions were a shock to her core.
But that's exactly why she couldn't accept it.
Seeing a kid who hadn't even lost all her baby teeth casually toss out the level of perfection she'd sacrificed her youth to barely approach felt like a denial of her entire life.
"Talent? Genius? Don't make me laugh."
She'd sung her whole life, honing her skills relentlessly.
That's why she believed she was the best singer on Singer Star right now.
Of course, excluding Joo Jinwoo.
"The world will see that hard work wins. That I didn't fail because I lacked skill, but because kids like you with all the luck stole my spot."
She needed recognition from that person more than anyone.
'Sorry, Jihye.'
'Um, is there really no way for a group of six?'
'Yeah. Sorry.'
The person who'd kicked her out of the debut lineup at the very end.
And now that person was sitting on the judging panel.
The other five without her had become idols whose faces were recognized everywhere in the country.
Even as the third generation faded, no one denied they were at its peak.
"I... I should have been there!"
But she still had a chance.
Seo Siyeon, the most spotlighted contestant on Singer Star right now. If she could beat that kid and advance, it would make up for all these lost years.
That's what she felt.
"KY trainee... huh."
Honestly, without that, she was nothing special.
Her vocals were textbook solid—sang well, but no charm.
A typical, ordinary vocalist without anything uniquely her own.
"That's not what's important right now."
Three pink flower-shaped plastic pins were stuck in my hair, and an unidentified glittery cape draped over my shoulders.
"Okay, Siyeon unnie! Now smile like a princess!"
Minhee, the youngest at the orphanage at five years old, squished my cheeks with her tiny, twig-like hands. My lips puckered out like a crucian's, mangling my speech.
"Minhee-ya... unnie has to work on a song right now..."
"No way! Princesses don't look at sheet music! Here, put on this crown too!"
'Don't princesses wear tiaras, not crowns?'
Minhee stubbornly plopped a crude paper crown on my head.
I let out a resigned sigh and stared at the laptop on my lap. (Borrowed from the orphanage storage—a beat-up old model.)
On the screen was footage of Im Jihye from her trainee days.
Honestly, I had no real reason to watch it now. She was very different from her past self.
Just simple curiosity.
About the woman who'd glared at me like an enemy throughout filming.
With flower pins in my hair, a cape on my shoulders, and fish-lips puckered, I muttered to myself.
'Im Jihye... her vibrato in the high register is too formulaic now. It wasn't like that before... She's actually regressed from back then.'
"Unnie! Why do you keep making that scary face? Smile!"
Minhee pinched my cheek again. I forcibly tugged up the corners of my mouth and let out a soulless "Hehe." My peers watching from the side snickered.
"Puhaha! Look at Seo Siyeon."
"Shut up... this is embarrassing enough."
I warned them in a low voice, but Minhee hanging a toy jewel necklace around my neck ruined any dignity.
Truth be told, shaking off the kids would be easy if I wanted.
But maybe because of memories from my past life. These kids growing up without parents treating me not as some TV wonder-unnie, but just family who plays with them—it wasn't so bad.
The embarrassment was fleeting, but this memory would last them a while.
"Unnie, look! I drew you!"
Minhee held out her sketchbook: a circle that could be a person or a potato, with only blue eyes crudely drawn on it.
Blue eyes. The kid had earnestly captured Seo Siyeon's one genetic trait.
"Uh... thanks. You did great."
I awkwardly patted Minhee's head.
Then turned back to the laptop. Im Jihye was spewing inferiority and hatred at me, vowing to prove her hard work.
But she'd overlooked one thing.
'It's not like I didn't work hard either...'
Truth was, I'd worked harder than anyone.
I wouldn't have landed a top producer spot at a major company in my past life without effort.
If anything, I'd poured more of my life into music than her.
"I want to try something new this time..."
This round was completely free choice.
I could do any stage I wanted.
Lately, I'd realized time was flying by.
Summer vacation was creeping up before I knew it, and half the year was already gone.
In other words, this moment wouldn't last forever.
A stage I could only do at this young age. I wanted to try one.
The Blooming stage was something even an adult could pull off.
"Come to think of it, Seolha looked really swamped lately."
Actually, Yoo Seolha was the main vocalist on Glassy Sky.
Her version was dominating the charts, her voice spilling out everywhere.
Too many people recognizing her, even at school—people coming just to gawk. She said she was going crazy.
I felt the same.
I wished they'd tone down the staring a bit.
-But my parents hated me doing music... Seems like this changed their minds a little! Hehe, thanks—it's all thanks to you, Siyeon!
I'd replied to her blushing gratitude text with an emoji.
Yoo Seolha's parents ran a pretty big semiconductor firm.
Semiconductor equipment manufacturing... Looked it up, and it's a solid mid-tier company. Not conglomerate-level, but close.
Can't blame a straitlaced businessman for hating his daughter becoming a "starving artist."
"Something only possible at this age..."
Objectively, my biggest asset right now was being ridiculously cute.
Not just cute—insanely cute. That's why everyone adored me wherever I went.
Honestly, the subtle disdain before I possessed this body? Probably jealousy over looks.
As I pondered alone, a massive cheer suddenly rocked the orphanage—or so it felt.
The abrupt roar made my brow twitch while glaring at the laptop.
On the old CRT TV, a white ball traced its path across green grass.
The nursery teachers and kids jumped up and down, screaming. The broadcast team's voices peaked, speakers straining.
-Over the fence! A thunderbolt solo home run right from the first pitch in the bottom of the 8th! Incheon takes the lead at home!
The caster's shout blended with the stadium-shaking cheers.
The screen cut from the batter circling the mound to the stands.
Over ten thousand people waving arms to make waves, red towels (team colors) flying as they sang at the top of their lungs.
In the midst of that fiery passion, on the platform, synchronized figures caught my eye.
"Cheerleaders?"