A Duet with the Flower Girl
“Jeong Managing Director.”
“When we’re alone, call me Soo-yeon.”
“Soo-yeon.”
I slowly called out her name, warm and intimate.
Between her short breaths, Jeong Soo-yeon’s beauty mark stood out unusually clearly.
“I’m a bit nervous.”
“Hm?”
“A new challenge is exciting, but you said this is my core entertainment. How can my heart not race?”
Jeong Soo-yeon, who had been silently watching me, let out a soft laugh.
In that laugh, there was more of a sense of disbelief than surprise.
“...I knew you were the type, but you really keep surprising me every time.”
“That’s why I’m here with you.”
“Right. It wasn’t the direction I initially thought.”
There was something meaningful in those words.
Jeong Soo-yeon smiled quietly, and her beauty mark sparkled under the light.
“By the way, do you speak English?”
“English?”
“Yes. If you’re going to work in Europe or North America, English will be a big plus. It gives immersion. When I saw you, you seemed to speak Chinese quite well.”
“Yes. Well, just... basic level.”
I casually brushed it off.
Not high TOEIC, and I hadn’t even taken the TOEFL.
Even painting wasn’t beyond basic.
“...That’s a bit of a shame. In-ha, one of your biggest advantages is your eloquence, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“In our country, the more skilled you are, the more you’re forced to be humble, but if results follow, a confident attitude is called ‘star quality’.”
Cultural difference.
The West is not a country of Confucian thought.
Unrude self-expression is rather an advantage.
And the masses love such characters.
Because humility isn’t a virtue here.
“English...”
It came to mind again.
Roulette.
It felt like I shouldn’t keep doing this, but the feeling of relying on talent rather than effort.
But then, if it’s there but not used, isn’t that even more foolish?
“If you give me the interview lines in advance, I’ll organize them.”
Jeong Soo-yeon continued, looking at her iPad.
“Actually, this might be better. If you speak English... it does make me worry in a different way.”
“...Worry?”
Her gaze lingered on my face for a moment, more precisely near my lips.
Though I tried not to notice, I felt the gaze.
I smiled awkwardly and asked.
“Why do you look like that?”
“With that talent, that body, that eloquence, if you perform in the Western world... I worry you might not act like a fish out of water.”
“...Not act? What do you mean?”
“Of course, drinking and women. It’s a place full of temptations.”
I smiled awkwardly.
Honestly, I hadn’t imagined it.
I hadn’t lived like that, and I couldn’t even think of living that way.
Those were always someone else’s lives beyond TV, famous athletes or entertainers.
“I’ll prepare the sponsor list and send it soon.”
“Yes.”
“Once the entertainment broadcast station’s scheduling meeting is finished, I’ll share it right away. It won’t take long. In-ha, I don’t want to miss the peak of your topicability.”
I nodded and looked out the window.
Through the glass, vehicles bustling between gray buildings.
Soft afternoon sunlight pouring over them.
New challenge.
New stage.
I took a small breath and turned to Jeong Soo-yeon.
“The first filming location should be a city with good wine.”
She looked up at me.
I smiled.
“If the first chess tournament winning drink is disappointing, it would be a shame.”
Late at night.
The streetlight along the road stretched long.
Time approaching midnight.
At this time, my destination was the partnered vocal academy.
Late hour, but the lights were still on.
“...It said the schedule was only this.”
Next week’s recording broadcast.
The partner for the duet song I would sing was a woman.
If only practicing at this time of day was possible, the probability of it being an idol was high.
A singer, or an actor.
“Who could it be?”
Pure curiosity.
But keeps participant info strictly private even among themselves.
Hidden rule.
I too put on my hat and mask and entered the academy.
“Hello.”
“You’re here?”
Kang In-sung, the trainer, greeted me.
I took off my shoes and headed to the practice room.
“Your throat feel a bit rough?”
“Yes, I warmed it up lightly in the car.”
“Then let’s do a bit of scaling and go straight into the song?”
After simple vocal warm-up, we decided to try the duet song right away.
Following the guide track’s voice, I overlaid my part and tried harmonies.
But.
“...Again.”
Kang In-sung shook his head.
“You followed the partner’s pitch. For harmony, it’s not about overlapping, but protecting your own melody.”
“...Yes.”
Back to the climax part.
I tried to go as much as possible with my own pitch.
But the recorded female vocal’s emotion kept wrapping around me.
Like a memory, like an echo, it dug in and shook the direction.
“Wrong again.”
This time a firmer voice.
“You did the harmony practice, right?”
“Yes, I’ve been doing it... but it’s too difficult.”
“Singing is ultimately in the realm of ‘talent’, so there’s nothing we can do. Let’s do as much as we can. If not, we can go without harmony.”
I reluctantly nodded.
That word stuck in my bones.
Duet without harmony.
A half solo disguised as a duet.
“...Well, it’s a dummy anyway.”
I knew I lacked talent.
Yet, there was clearly a desire to do well.
But since it wasn’t up to me, my heart was frustrated.
Continued repeated practice.
As harmony gradually matched, the clock approached 1 AM.
It had passed an hour beyond the pre-scheduled appointment time.
“Too late?”
Even if an idol, wasn’t it customary to ask for permission separately?
But Kang In-sung didn’t say anything.
Familiar, as if natural.
At that moment.
Creak!
The entrance door opened outside the practice room.
With a large-built male manager, a woman entered.
Deeply pulled-down beanie on her face.
Mask larger than her face.
And cheap sunglasses at night.
Clearly “I’m an idol” outfit.
“Sorry for being late.”
The manager greeted formally.
But she only gave a glance and nodded to me.
“...An idol?”
Age group was hard to tell.
Early twenties if looked after.
Leading with the manager, she said no word.
“Sorry, can we start practice right away? Our group... no, ‘Flower Girl’ has a morning schedule.”
“Yes, of course.”
When moving to the practice room, Kang In-sung played the MR.
Starting with my part.
Normal.
No shaking, just singing as usual.
And the following 2nd verse.
The part for ‘Flower Girl’, the masked name for .
“...She’s good.”
Honestly, it was enough to make me sigh in admiration.
Thin and fine voice.
High notes effortlessly passed, and emotional line was rich.
Even though male song, vocal power and expression both solid.
Real singer definitely had a different feel.
And the following climax harmony part.
My low voice laid underneath, and Flower Girl soared above.
Singer and ordinary person.
This was an unavoidable difference.
And originally, I had decided to appear to raise my popular recognition.
After the song ended, the manager said as if waiting.
“This seems enough, right?”
“Yes. I think it’s sufficient.”
Kang In-sung also nodded to the words.
“Is this the end?”
Actually, the one who was bewildered was me.
I had adjusted my schedule to this time, and practiced for over an hour with focus.
But ended with just a few words?
Feeling like I was being ignored.
“Then, thank you for your hard work. See you on the recording day.”
The manager greeted and turned.
“Flower Girl” bowed her head slightly while looking at me.
Face hidden by mask.
Eyes with fatigue.
Yet somewhere haughty gaze.
The two turned and left the entrance.
I stared blankly at their backs in disbelief.
Kang In-sung approached and said.
“You worked hard. Please do well in the filming.”
“...Thank you for your hard work.”
After formal greeting, I left the practice room.
Heading to the outdoor parking lot, I stopped for a moment.
Turning my head, the lights inside the vocal academy were slowly turning off.
It felt bad.
All of this process.
People’s tones, attitudes, atmosphere.
None of it particularly pleasing.
“This isn’t it.”
Smallly muttering like a self-talk, I moved my feet again.
recording day.
From morning, mind was in a daze.
After receiving the production team introduction, I visited the exclusive shop and finished setting from head to toe.
To prevent identity exposure, I moved to the broadcasting station wearing the stage outfit I had chosen in advance.
Hot mask.
Heavy clothes.
Inconvenient movement.
“Hmm, troublesome.”
Meanwhile, the masked name and concept I chose was ‘Checkmate’.
Silver mask imitating the king and knight of chess.
Black long coat.
And the metaphor in the word ‘Checkmate’.
Concept chosen as meaning symbolizing the path I would go in the future.
Upon arriving at the broadcasting station parking lot, the waiting cameras moved.
From the moment I got out of the car, cameras and lights followed me.
I walked slowly with heavy steps.
Like a character that was taciturn but present, fitting the concept.
Masked agents followed on both sides like escorting with fanfare.
Secrecy.
Entering the waiting room, taking a brief breath, a knock sounded.
“Checkmate-nim, please wait in the studio for rehearsal!”
I stood up from the chair and headed to the studio.
After watching the performers who were rehearsing, I briefly tasted the on-site atmosphere.
After a while, following the host’s guidance, I stood on the stage with lights off.
Not nervous, but all spaces were unfamiliar and awkward.
Next to me, an idol with the masked name ‘Flower Girl’ stood holding a microphone.
When Han Kyung-il PD gestured, the accompaniment flowed out.
.
I sang as I had practiced.
At the climax, the pitch shook a bit but didn’t deviate much.
Harmony entered without mistake.
Song ended, lights turned off.
Brief silence.
At that time, Flower Girl spoke first.
“Please lower the reverb a bit. It’s too echoey.”
She paused briefly, then touched the mask and continued.
“And can I open the breathing part more? There’s too much sweat inside.”
I stood there holding the microphone.
After Flower Girl’s adjustment requests ended, I waited silently.
Anyway, it’s a duet.
After finishing the adjustments, Han Kyung-il PD’s instruction fell.
“Now, Flower Girl-nim, you can go in. Checkmate-nim, please prepare for the elimination song rehearsal.”
“...What? Only me?”
I turned my head for a moment.
Flower Girl was heading to the waiting room without saying a word.
What was this?
Previous teams had both done elimination song rehearsals, but why only me?
I squinted my eyes inside the mask.
“...You don’t need to see, it’s obvious I’m eliminated.”
I had expected it, but being openly treated as an eliminated person felt bad.
Heart sank inside, and anger rose in the gap.
Still.
I finished the elimination song rehearsal to the end and returned to the waiting room.
When I took off the mask, drank a sip of water, and calmed my breath.
A call came from Jeong Soo-yeon, the managing director.
“It’s me, In-ha. Can I talk for a moment?”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
“There are two pieces of news... Let me tell you the good news first, or the bad news first?”
Her voice was a bit more cautious than usual.
“Bad news first.”
“...We were promoting the chess entertainment, but the broadcasting station expressed reluctance to all of it. They said In-ha’s popular recognition isn’t enough yet to see as the top entertainment, and moreover, the low popularity of the chess genre is too niche and burdensome.”
“...I see.”
Not unexpected, but hearing it oddly bittersweet.
“What about the good news?”
“OTT Netflix showed interest.”
At those words, my eyes widened.
The world’s largest online streaming platform.
Service in over 150 countries,
And that ‘Netflix’ which led global success with numerous original contents?
“A chess drama produced by Netflix a while ago hit overseas big time. Won Golden Globe too. Thanks to that, the concept of ‘Go professional challenges chess’ seems to have been viewed quite interestingly.”
Faint hope bloomed.
But her voice lowered again.
“...But, there’s one thing that’s sticking.”
“What is it?”
“In-ha’s popularity in Korea.”
Again, ultimately that talk.
“Even Netflix knows that ‘Korean is world-class’, but... still, in the starting stage, they want some ‘domestic topicability’ guaranteed. That way, initial reactions attach, and it’s easy to expand globally.”
I quietly took a breath.
And looking up, calmly asked.
“...Wait a moment, Soo-yeon. You said popular topicability just now?”
“Yes.”
At that moment, one clear method flashed in my mind.
Heart quietly but strongly beating.
“Then, that popular topicability...”
I took a short breath.
And, firmly pressing down emotions, said.
“If I become the king of , is that okay?”