We Are OKTOP
My words drew everyone’s attention.
Was this name too abrupt to bring up now?
We were in a basement, after all.
But all I could think about was that name.
We had originally started out in the rooftop practice room in Hongdae.
It was a name we had given ourselves lightly, meant to remind us not to forget our beginnings.
But I hadn’t been able to hold on to those beginnings, and because of me, my friends had lost their way.
So I had no choice but to keep dreaming of that day on the rooftop.
Even after becoming a traitor.
Even now, after leaping back into the past with a miracle at my back.
“OKTOP? Why OKTOP?”
“Because this is a basement.”
“Ehh… that’s it?”
“Because this is a basement. And someday we’re going to climb higher. We’re naming ourselves after our destination.”
“Hmm, I guess that’s not bad in meaning.”
“I like it. It feels like an indie band.”
“So Bonding Band really wasn’t it, huh?”
“Hey, now!”
Lee Doyeong said it wasn’t bad, at least, and Kang Min was still spouting nonsense.
No, seriously—what in the world was a Bonding Band?
In the end, Kim Jihoo gave my words the final push.
“If you put it in English, it becomes ‘OK TOP.’ If we ever make it far enough to go overseas, it would work well as a name.”
“Oh! Wow, yeah, that’s what I’m talking about. Smart guys really are different. I’m in!”
“I hope a day like that really comes.”
“It’s not as good as the Bonding Band, but this is fine with me too!”
“Hey, Kang Min, what the hell even is that?”
“Something like that exists.”
“All right, then. If no one objects, we’re going with OKTOP?”
“Good! Decided! Bang bang bang!”
“We’re the OKTOP band!”
“We’re OKTOP!”
It was just a name, so why were they all so excited?
As each of them pictured what it would be like once OKTOP became famous in their own way, they shared the same dream with one another.
Like the story of my life, repeated once more, OKTOP was announcing a new beginning.
This time, I would never betray you.
I would never betray OKTOP.
After deciding on the name, we started busking at Banwol Park every weekend under the name of the band OKTOP.
Once vacation started, we made time to perform on weekdays too, and a whole month had already passed like that.
In my last life, I learned so much while working in the entertainment industry.
One of those lessons was that consistency never betrayed you.
No matter what we did, we had to keep leaving a trace behind us.
That trace began with busking at Banwol Park.
And when enough time passed, it would become a huge help to us.
Of course, busking wasn’t the only thing we had to keep at.
“Huff, huff…”
“Doyeong, you struggling?”
“Seoha… I think I’m going to die…”
“Doyeong’s stamina is really bad.”
While planning our next move, I dragged Lee Doyeong and Kang Min out for runs at least three times a week.
My body had always been the kind that belonged to someone who worked out, so if I didn’t burn off energy like this, I started to feel stiff and sluggish.
Kang Min had always run around Banwol Park pretty often to begin with.
Lee Doyeong, though…
“But Seoha, what does lowering my body fat under 15 percent have to do with bass?”
“Doyeong.”
“Yeah…”
We took a short break and sat on a bench to talk, because Lee Doyeong was already too exhausted to keep running.
“Do you know what your biggest problem is right now?”
“My playing?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
“Your stamina.”
“Stamina? Performing doesn’t even feel that hard.”
“That’s not the point.”
My words made Kang Min and Lee Doyeong both look puzzled.
“There’s a saying, right? That stamina is national strength?”
“Yeah, sure?”
“What kind of era are we living in now? An era where people value their leisure time. That means it’s an age that values art.”
“……”
The two of them already looked like they could guess where I was going with this.
If I were them, I’d probably have the same expression.
“Leisure time. In other words, what does that mean? It means this is a world where art matters. Stamina is national strength, and to build national strength, you need art. So stamina is art. Makes sense, right?”
“No, not at all.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about either.”
“Anyway, I’m right. So let’s work hard and build up your stamina!”
“I don’t buy it at all, but… exercise is good, so I’ll do it for now.”
“Good. That’s a very good attitude.”
“I still have no idea what that’s supposed to mean…”
Unlike Lee Doyeong, who was content to say that if it was good, it was good, Kang Min still looked at me like I was some kind of weirdo.
Can’t help it, Doyeong.
You’ll look a lot better once you lose weight.
And so the three of us started running around the park again.
Maybe we ran for another minute or so?
“Huh? Aaaah!!”
“Waaah!”
Someone screamed, and the three of us had to stop dead in our tracks in surprise.
“Whoa, you’re OKTOP, right?”
“Ah, yes. Hello.”
“Amazing! I’m a fan! Um, can I shake your hand?”
“Haha, thank you.”
A woman had recognized us.
It looked like all our consistency was already starting to pay off.
“I follow all your socials too! Please post more often.”
“Yes, but we’re not very good at taking pictures, so it’s not easy.”
“Even bad photos look good when you’re handsome!”
“Thank you.”
“Are you performing again this week?”
“Yes. This week we’re adding a new song too.”
“Wow, amazing. I’ll be waiting in the front row again this week!”
“Thank you. It’s hot out, so make sure you bring some water.”
“I will! I’ll be cheering for you!”
The fan headed off again, her face still bright red with excitement.
“Cha Seoha, you really do seem like a celebrity.”
“Really? What makes you say that?”
“How should I put it… you never seem flustered. There’s this ease about you.”
“Yeah, Seoha really does feel like a celebrity.”
“What celebrity? I’m just being nice because she’s a fan.”
“And I’ve noticed since last time that Min’s way of talking is kind of strange.”
At Lee Doyeong’s sharp jab, Kang Min flinched.
“Na, nani?”
“……See? That. He’s weird, Seoha.”
“Yeah, he looks weird. Very weird.”
He really did have a handsome face.
Kang Min’s features were sharply defined overall, and his eyes were especially deep and intense.
He had a very masculine look to him, with thick brows and a face that didn’t seem like it belonged to a high school student at all.
And now that he’d grown his hair out, he even had a touch of wildness to him.
Then he went and sat behind a drum set, and that sealed the deal.
But for someone like that to be an otaku… even now, thinking about it, the image was still strangely mismatched.
Although outside of our little circle, it looked like he was desperately cosplaying as a normal person.
“Now you’re the one going ‘nani.’ Hey, quit with the nonsense.”
“Kukukukuh!”
He still laughed by himself like crazy too.
Whenever we got annoyed, he only made things worse and laughed even harder on his own.
He was doing it on purpose just to get under our skin.
Come to think of it, he really was the biggest weirdo in our group.
“Anyway, Seoha, what are we doing now?”
Lee Doyeong, apparently wanting to stop running, asked a strange question.
“What do you mean, what are we doing? We’re running.”
“No, not that. Are we just going to keep busking like this? It feels like we’re moving around without a purpose.”
That wasn’t a strange question at all. It was a very good one.
“I was actually planning to talk about it soon. At our next rehearsal, I’m bringing a song I wrote.”
“A song? The one you said you were making before?”
“That’s right.”
“What, Cha Seoha, you compose too?”
“Yeah. I already booked time at a studio. I’ll tell you the details once everyone’s together.”
“Ooooh…”
“I can’t say anything about the quality until you hear it, but it was already something way more incredible than you’d expect, wasn’t it?”
My next plan was to make our own song.
By now, we had pretty decent chemistry.
We practiced together almost every day and performed once or twice a week.
We had gathered all our members and figured out how to lock into each other’s timing.
And on top of that, we’d even decided on the band name.
But there was still one thing we didn’t have.
The song that we ourselves had made.
We needed that.
It was the unfinished Rendezvous I had left behind last time before I could finish the work.
I had to finish it quickly and complete it together with them.
We still had time, but this was something we had to perform then.
In a way, you could call it our first debut song for broadcast.
Well, not that we were going on a music show right away or anything.
“I’m planning to finish the song tomorrow and bring it with me.”
“Whoa! I’m coming too!”
“Kang Min, don’t you have part-time work tomorrow?”
“Nope. I’ve got absolutely nothing tomorrow.”
After a moment’s thought, I figured Kang Min would be useful.
“All right, good. What about you, Doyeong?”
“I’ve got a family gathering tomorrow. Too bad—I want to see you write it too.”
“I’ll finish it and bring it to the next rehearsal.”
“Yeah. Too bad, but it can’t be helped.”
“Then, Kang Min, come with me tomorrow and let’s get some drum recording done.”
“All right.”
The next day, I brought Kang Min with me to ST Studio for the first time in a while.
“Wow, it’s been ages since I’ve been in a studio.”
“Oh, Kang Min, you’ve been somewhere like this before?”
“I came a few times to lay down recordings.”
“A champion really is on another level.”
“It’s all old news now.”
He wore the expression of someone looking back on the past.
We went into the room that had been reserved for us.
This time, even without any involvement from Boss Jang Deokcheol, Boss Jo Hyeonseop had let us use it for free.
If everything kept going well, I’d be able to repay both Boss Jang Deokcheol and Boss Jo Hyeonseop someday.
We had to succeed.
For the people who had helped us, and for our own success.
“I’ve got a song sketched out already. Today we’re going to finish it, so let’s start by laying down the drums.”
“That’s nothing. Leave it to me.”
“Let’s listen to the song first.”
With that, I played the rough sketch of Rendezvous I’d worked out last time.
Hearing it again after so long made the parts that needed correction stand out much more clearly.
I didn’t have to worry about the drums, since Kang Min would handle those well.
I’d need to adjust the melody guitar that came in with the chorus a little more.
Listening again, the synth texture also felt a bit lacking.
The bass could stay as it was, but when we recorded it, I’d need to make sure the live feel came through.
If I fixed those parts, that should do it.
After about three minutes, the playback finally ended.
“...Hey, Cha Seoha.”
“Yeah?”
“What is this song?”