Chapter 167
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 167
Kang Yi-chae was acting strange.
"Yi-chae~, come eat. I bought those burgers you like!!"
"……."
No matter how much they tried to bribe him with food.
"Hyung, hyung! Do you want to play a game? I topped up the account. Ji-won hyung said it’s okay for you to take a break!"
"……No…."
Even when they dangled the very game he usually went wild for.
"Kang Yi-chae, uh… want to go for a walk?"
"…No……."
No matter what they tried, he remained listless.
"…Should we go practice then?"
"…Yeah."
At least he responded to the word 'practice.'
Seong Ji-won watched Kang Yi-chae with a worried expression.
Even while practicing for the final competition for a long time, Kang Yi-chae would suddenly dash forward and kill the music, claiming it sounded "hideous."
"No, no, no, ah, this isn't it!"
"……."
No, what wasn't it?
It was going perfectly fine.
While everyone stared in shock, Kang Yi-chae collapsed again and started rolling around the practice room floor.
"Ah!! I'm going crazy because I'm so worried about myself!!"
"……."
Tring!
[Has he finally lost it?]
My thoughts exactly.
"……Should we just leave him alone for now?"
"Y-yeah…."
Besides the alternating listlessness and outbursts, a new pattern had emerged.
He would shut himself in the company’s recording studio or his room, wearing headphones with bloodshot eyes, working on something incessantly. Every now and then, he would let out a wailing sound.
"I'm having such a hard time…. I want to cry…."
"……."
I could bet my life there wasn't a single teardrop on that keyboard.
After watching this in silence for a few days, we left Kang Yi-chae alone in his room and held an emergency meeting in the living room.
While the other members were whispering with hushed voices, I pointed my thumb toward the room where Kang Yi-chae was and spoke loudly.
"Does anyone know why that bastard is acting like that?"
"Didn't we agree to speak quietly?"
Kim Seong-hyeon looked bewildered.
But if he’s flailing around like that for attention, isn't it only right to meet his expectations?
As I scanned the members, Jeong Da-jun raised his hand high.
"Da-jun! Is it because he lost his rank-up match in the game?"
"Seong-hyeon. Is this the time for games? Besides, Kang Yi-chae usually just laughs it off even when he loses. I don't think that's it."
Everyone fell silent at Kim Seong-hyeon's testimony. Then, Seong Ji-won quietly raised his hand and spoke.
"Ji-won. He's acting like that because he's not satisfied with his own skills."
"……."
"……."
"……."
"…Right, sorry. I guess not."
Seong Ji-won muttered awkwardly, but something clicked in my mind.
"Since when has he been like this?"
"Two days ago…. To be precise, forty-seven hours and twenty-three minutes ago!"
"Wasn't that around the time we were filming?"
Actually, it was near the very end of the shoot.
Tracing back my memories, I let out a sigh.
"You guys stay here for a second."
"Okay~."
The culprit was one hundred percent certain.
This was the work of Cheong-beom, Im Hyeon-su.
"I've never seen Kang Yi-chae say he's having a hard time before."
"Should we ask him to play Halli Galli to change his mood??"
"Da-jun, not what you want to do."
Leaving the living room where the members were still noisily discussing Kang Yi-chae, I made a call from the corner of the balcony. It didn't take long for the call to connect.
[The cute, pretty, gorgeous, genius composer Im Hyeon-su has answered the phone~.]
"……."
I think I finally understood why she and Kang Yi-chae hit it off so well from the start.
"Sigh……."
I only let out a sigh without saying a word, but Im Hyeon-su cackled gleefully as if she already knew why I was calling.
[Hey~, how's Yi-chae?]
"What did you do to Kang Yi-chae?"
[I told you, I just sent a song to my disciple.]
Disciple, my foot.
Since the one in need is the one who digs the well, I was the one who finally brought up the main point.
"You're telling me Kang Yi-chae is acting like that just because you sent him one song? There's definitely more to it."
[What exactly is Kang Yi-chae doing?]
Noticing my irritation was reaching its limit, Im Hyeon-su added in a voice still laced with laughter.
[I told you. I had something that turned out so well among my unreleased tracks, so I let Kang Yi-chae listen to a snippet. That's all.]
No, but why on earth did she trust him enough to send it?
Im Hyeon-su mainly worked with major agencies. In particular, she frequently produced for WH Entertainment's idols.
There was even a possibility she would handle High Five's song for this final competition.
"Is it by any chance High Five's song?"
I asked, wondering if Im Hyeon-su—who was usually very clear about separating business from pleasure—would actually do such a thing. A snicker came through the phone.
[It's nothing like that. Do you think I'm crazy?]
"Then why would you trust Kang Yi-chae enough to send him an unreleased song?"
[Why? Are you worried Kang Yi-chae might plagiarize it? Hey, do you think he's me?]
"……."
Im Hyeon-su, seriously….
[I've washed my hands of that, really. I was just possessed for a moment. It was the definition of pathetic…. All of Cheong-beom's dignity is gone.]
"Your dignity has been gone for a long time."
[You meanie.]
Anyway, there was no way the great Kang Yi-chae would be this depressed just because he heard a well-made song.
"Do something about him. If he's like this right before the final competition, I can't use him."
Im Hyeon-su burst into a boisterous laugh.
[Ahahaha, you really don't get it, do you?]
"Get what?"
[Hey, you really have no clue why he's so gloomy right now? No one can help him. That's a problem only Kang Yi-chae can solve.]
"……."
[Even I think that song turned out damn well. Hearing it must have made Kang Yi-chae feel a bit bitter.]
"…Kang Yi-chae?"
[There aren't many people who understand my music as well as he does. And the more you understand, the more you can hear.]
Was it some kind of composer's world thing?
I still didn't fully understand, but hearing Im Hyeon-su's words helped me piece things together.
So, basically, Kang Yi-chae heard Im Hyeon-su's song, felt the wall of his own talent, and ended up in this state… something like that.
'What a luxury to have such worries.'
My PD brain couldn't follow what kind of nonsense this was, so I just sighed again.
"So why did you send it to him?"
[He's my disciple.]
"Forget that. If it turned out well, you should have just been proud of it yourself. Why did you have to send it to Kang Yi-chae?"
[Wow. Seo Ho-yun, you act like you don't care, but you're really protective of your own, aren't you?]
I was about to retort that it was only natural, but I hesitated.
I remembered how excessively depressed Im Hyeon-su had sounded over the phone before.
[…Pfft.]
Of course, Im Hyeon-su, who was quick-witted and sharp, couldn't have missed this.
[Hey, Seo Ho-yun. You've softened up a lot, haven't you?]
"……."
[I feel so proud. It's like I've tamed a stray cat with a terrible personality. Oh, sorry. You're pushing the rabbit image, right?]
"Are you joking right now?"
I heard a faint tapping sound from the phone. Even without seeing it, it was obvious Im Hyeon-su was tapping her desk with a cigarette pack.
[Why did I send it? Ho-yun, you know. I suddenly got cast in the role of Salieri. And Kang Yi-chae felt that and started walking on eggshells around me, damn it.]
"……."
[But, you know, I've been there too. That moment when I firmly believed I was the best.]
Im Hyeon-su muttered bitterly.
[And then I hit a massive wall of reality.]
She spoke with conviction.
[He's not the type to end up like me. No, he shouldn't. That's why I'm setting his direction before things get out of hand.]
So that he could navigate the rough path she had already walked a bit more easily. She was correcting Kang Yi-chae's arrogance and guiding him to not be satisfied with the present but to keep moving forward.
Since I could understand an act born out of affection, I pressed my brow and muttered.
"Even so, did you have to do it now, right before the final competition?"
[Ahahaha, sorry for being a bit mischievous. But isn't it true that heroes are born from such hardships? That's how it works in cartoons, right?]
Hardships, my ass.
Excited by my reaction, Im Hyeon-su said almost sing-songingly.
[It took me over half a year to recover while sharing love in California~, I'm really curious how long it'll take Kang Yi-chae~.]
"Just say you wanted to go on a vacation. Don't use someone else's member as an excuse."
[Is Seo Ho-yun so prickly because he doesn't know what lo~ve is~?]
"……."
Damn that California.
Listening to the voice of a fully recovered and smirking Im Hyeon-su, I rubbed the back of my neck as I recalled the days I spent suffering in Korea.
[I'll buy you a drink later, okay. Don't be pouting, our Ho-yun.]
"I'm already pouting."
And I hung up the phone abruptly without listening to her reply. Habitually fumbling in my pocket, I lowered my hand and let out a series of sighs.
"Phew."
Mozart and Salieri, my foot.
This was more like… yeah.
"It's just a clash of two stubborn geniuses."
But there was one thing Im Hyeon-su didn't know.
That guy is 'Kang Yi-chae.'
* * *
There wasn't much time left until the final competition.
Having finished organizing my thoughts after the call, I decided to handle things quickly.
"Kang Yi-chae. Let's talk."
"……."
Entering the room, I pulled off Kang Yi-chae's headset and spoke. Kang Yi-chae, who was sitting almost reclined in his chair, was as limp as a withered scallion.
At my signal, Kim Seong-hyeon quickly pulled Kang Yi-chae upright.
"Why~? I'm going through puberty, leave me alone…."
His nonsense was the same as ever, but he looked drained of energy.
Seong Ji-won hovered nearby, looking concerned.
"I heard from the composer."
"……!"
A spark of life suddenly returned to the eyes of the slumped Kang Yi-chae.
I pulled up a small stool and sat in front of him.
"What's the problem?"
After keeping his mouth shut for a long time, Kang Yi-chae lowered his head and muttered.
"……I don't want to do it."
"……."
At that moment, I reflexively turned my gaze toward Kim Seong-hyeon. Kim Seong-hyeon happened to be looking at me too.
—You too?
—Yup.
Seong Ji-won, who was raised by his grandmother, and Jeong Da-jun, an only child, were lost in serious thought with grim expressions. But Kim Seong-hyeon and I, who both had younger siblings, immediately recognized where Kang Yi-chae's reaction was coming from.
Kang Yi-chae was currently…
'Throwing a tantrum.'
He was whining.
It was on the same level as "I don't want to go to school," "I don't want to go to Taekwondo," or "I don't want to play the recorder for tomorrow's performance assessment."
It was that tone and face people use when they're annoyed by something subtle even though it's not a big deal, so they just start by throwing a fit.
Kim Seong-hyeon seemed to have reached a similar conclusion. We nodded at each other while maintaining eye contact.
—I'm going in.
—Got it.
There was a special measure for times like this.
"Is that so?"
I said, crossing my legs and resting my chin on my hand.
"Then don't do it."
"……Eh?"
"If it's hard, you shouldn't do it. You've worked hard."
Even if they're acting like children, people who throw fits know perfectly well that they're not behaving correctly.
That's why, even in the middle of a tantrum, they get flustered if the other person suddenly switches gears and agrees with them.
Looking at the current Kang Yi-chae reminded me of a young Seo Ho-jin.
The guy who would cry for days saying he didn't want to go to school would shout, "Hyung, you really don't listen to me, you're the worst!" after I told him not to go if he hated it that much. Then he would sniffle and drag himself to school anyway. Later, he'd come home with an awkward face, carrying a Pika-Chu Pork Cutlet.
'He was cute back then.'
What a memory.
Anyway, it was definitely a tantrum, but there was one thing that bothered me.
'This is Kang Yi-chae.'
The guy in front of me wasn't ten-year-old Seo Ho-jin, but the incredibly sharp-witted Kang Yi-chae. He probably guessed that I knew he was exaggerating his tantrum.
'Given how he was stealing glances earlier.'
As I threw the bait and waited for a reaction, Kang Yi-chae blinked his eyes.
"…Huh?"
And then, looking truly flustered, he stared at me, forgetting that he was even throwing a fit. That's when I was certain.
'This guy….'
He wasn't flustered because I told him to quit; he was flustered because he wondered if I had actually fallen for his acting.
Even he thought his tantrum was too obvious.
By this point, Seong Ji-won seemed to have roughly grasped the situation as a faint smile appeared on his face. Only Jeong Da-jun's face brightened, thinking Kang Yi-chae had regained some energy since his expression had changed.
But if I stopped here, it would all be for nothing.
Kim Seong-hyeon stepped in at the right time to lend his support.
"It's. Okay. Yi. Chae."
"……."
"I. Respect. You. Too."
With an Acting Stat of E-, Kim Seong-hyeon was practically an outdated AI.
Even Jeong Da-jun looked at him strangely because of his robotic way of speaking.
"……Ah."
Kang Yi-chae remained speechless for a moment, then ran a hand through his hair and let out a hollow laugh.
"…I was almost fooled. I briefly forgot this person was an actor."
Kang Yi-chae pouted at me.
I gave him the "pretty" answer he was looking for.
"There, have some attention."
"……Seriously, hyung, you're annoying sometimes."
"I'm glad it's only sometimes."
Kang Yi-chae puffed out his lips and rested his chin on both hands. He tapped his toes against the floor, seemingly still wanting to whine to the other members.
"Well, I don't know…. It's just that it's my first time feeling such a wall after hearing the composer's song…."
This part was likely the truth.
However, the Kang Yi-chae I knew—though I didn't think that was all there was to him—was someone with a very strong personal philosophy that as long as he and the people he cared about were happy, it was enough. I judged that even a slump wouldn't shake his daily life this much.
Also, having unintentionally seen various sides of Kang Yi-chae, the discordant part I felt from him now stood out clearly.
'Compared to what happened in Japan, this is nothing.'
If he were truly struggling to the point of being overwhelmed, he would have shut his mouth instead, and the atmosphere around him would have changed completely.
'The fact that he's acting like this means he still has some leeway.'
As I contemplated whether to play along and satisfy him or just keep ignoring him, Jeong Da-jun stepped closer to Kang Yi-chae.
"Yi-chae hyung, you know."
"What."
"It's better not to worry about others."
"……!"
We all looked at Jeong Da-jun with shocked faces.
"I felt that way this time too. I felt it during the performance competition. …I was so immersed that I really couldn't see anything around me."
The maknae blushed slightly at the focused attention.
"So don't compare yourself either, hyung. Like you always say, the important thing is that you're having fun."
The maknae really landed a blow.
It seemed Jeong Da-jun's serious advice had properly reached the guy who was acting like a child. Kang Yi-chae was silent for a long time.
I suppressed the urge to cackle beside them.
A small reply finally came.
"…Yeah."
Jeong Da-jun smiled a little.
In any case, Im Hyeon-su was right. It was true that he had felt his own wall.
"Let's just eat."
The rest was up to Kang Yi-chae himself.
Just as Jeong Da-jun had succeeded.
"…Sigh."
Following us out with a sigh, Kang Yi-chae sat at the table and shoveled down the food we prepared. After emptying three bowls, he finally went back to his room.
The guy, who had been diligently scribbling something on paper with a pen after wiping the smile off his face, finally turned on his laptop a few hours later. He didn't close the screen until the sun rose and set again.