ALL NOVEL Chapter 165
Episode 165
The recording day had arrived.
Gaeul stood on the famous plaza stage, spacious enough for a small stage, attracting a large crowd.
Normally, I’d just be in the back enjoying the view, but today, I had my hands on the keys and found myself up there on stage.
This round allowed for sessions in a small-scale format, so it was okay for me to be up there, but doubts popped up in my head: “Is this really okay?”
Honestly, this stage felt completely different from the amateur busking I used to do.
What everyone here, and all the countless viewers watching the recording, was expecting was a flawless professional performance.
Despite me having practiced continually since that busking without any reward, I still felt no confidence in meeting those expectations.
Did Gaeul even understand my pressure? She casually commented while looking at the sea of people gathering in the plaza.
“There are so many audience members.”
Her laid-back remark somehow eased my tension, and I responded to her.
“It takes me back. Remember how we used to perform on the streets together?”
“Yeah. It was just a little over a year ago, but it feels so nostalgic.”
“Well, a lot has changed since then. The number of audience members has changed, the size of the stage has changed, and the entrance is different too.”
At my words, Gaeul, who had been focusing on the audience in front of the stage, turned to look at me and said:
“Actually, nothing has changed.”
Huh?
“Still, there should be thousands and thousands more eyes watching this time compared to last time. Isn’t that different?”
“No, it’s the same. Whether it’s this stage or the last one, in the end, it’s just me and Team Leader Seon that matter.”
In front of the thousands of gathered audience members looking at us, Gaeul said that.
“Haha, I appreciate the words, but we’re professionals; shouldn’t we say the audience is the most important?”
“You said you wanted us to enjoy the stage, right? So I’m trying to be honest.”
A warm smile graced her profile as she adjusted the pick while holding her guitar.
“I’m the happiest when I’m on stage with Brother Taeyang.”
*
In the media room, anxiety hung heavy among the staff of TwoBear.
“The Love judgment result for Lena Shin is an unprecedented figure of 95%! It’s an overwhelming percentage that our Music Road production team never imagined would come out.”
The opponent who went on stage before Gaeul, Lena Shin, received a shocking, overwhelming judgment that no one saw coming.
“95%… that’s a score that feels like cheating.”
“It’s the same score.”
“Honestly, it was a performance worthy of that score. Truly, it’s Teacher Lena Shin.”
Cheon Aram furrowed her brows as she listened to the conversation between Lee Hyerin and Song Johan.
“What was Gaeul’s judging rate the last time?”
“It was 87%, President.”
“That score came from Gaeul, who performed at her best with a strong song choice called ‘Albatross.’”
“…That’s correct.”
Cheon Aram let out a sigh and spoke.
“This isn’t going to be easy.”
“But it’ll be fine.”
Amidst the gathered gazes, Yeoreum spoke up.
“Both Team Leader Seon and Older Sister Gaeul are geniuses, after all.”
*
Maybe I had a feeling that a day like this would come around again someday.
The reason I didn’t stop tuning the piano, even during the busiest moments of Girl Revolution, when a mere three hours of naps was everything, can only be explained that way.
Despite James Oh’s suggestion that the producer doesn’t need to take on the role of a session player, and Cheon Jong-hoon’s comment that playing the piano helps with understanding music but that the time I invest is excessive, I didn’t stop tapping the keys.
Since I couldn’t find an appropriate answer, I just awkwardly laughed at such remarks and insisted on playing the piano, but now it seems I can answer back.
I didn’t want to feel embarrassed.
This thought had been in my mind from the very first moment I realized her talent.
I didn’t want to feel embarrassed standing next to the genius Yoo Gaeul.
The reason I ended up playing the piano beside her was entirely spontaneous. I thought it would be okay to make good use of it since there would be compensation, and I had done it in the last round too, so it wouldn’t be too awkward.
However, that light-hearted mindset shattered the moment Yoo Gaeul opened with her first line.
“In the autumn night when all the leaves have fallen, I once sang.”
Yes, just like now.
“I wanted to sing. Even though I couldn’t.”
“I wanted to raise my voice. Even though no one would hear.”
The guitar she was holding, and the piano I was touching.
Even those two small instruments remained silent now; she filled the world solely with her voice.
“Because I liked it, because I loved it, because I enjoyed it.”
That day, I was captivated by the emotions that deeply spread through the air.
So much so that I forgot my role and was drawn in as a mere audience member.
But I won’t let that happen again now that I have another chance.
“But my voice has dulled and vanished into the autumn sky.”
But the voice dulled and vanished into the autumn sky.
Without any meaning, leaving nothing behind.
Carefully and gently, pianissimo.
I add the impurity of my name to Gaeul’s pure and noble vocals.
As if waiting for the dance of the keys, Gaeul starts plucking the guitar strings too.
The song that shattered and lingered like a yoke has become a burden.
A wound that I can neither give up nor love, and a burden.
The softly laid bass. Gaeul’s voice sounds like a confession, quietly ringing out.
The audience becomes one with the filled sound space, as if sinking into a swamp.
At that moment, someone told me. Heavy, troublesome, and messy.
Yet, I realized I was in love.
And then, like rising flames, lightly and intensely, mezzo forte.
The song and my fingers on the keys begin to accelerate.
I cried, I cried again. I sang. And in the end, I laughed.
‘Memories of the Sea and Leaves,’ an intricate piece that I wouldn’t have been able to handle without reward, showcases an aggressive duel between the piano solo and guitar riffs.
However, the song I composed this time, titled ‘The Duty of Singing,’ boasts a higher difficulty level in its highlights than ‘Memories of the Sea and Leaves.’
Recalling that I have to play this myself, it was not just reckless but an arrogant choice.
Cheon Jong-hoon and James Oh both said I should ease the difficulty of this part until the end.
But I insisted on this difficulty.
I thought it should be a piece that draws out everything, not just something Gaeul casually warmed up to.
I want to indulge in this sweetness with you, not anyone else but you.
Fingers dance.
Notes densely filled rain down, choking my breath.
Rationality says, ‘Give up. This is not a realm you can reach.’
In the moment I could slip while balancing on a line along the cliff, a strong premonition tells me everything will collapse.
Still…
Still, I must do it.
No, I will do it.
With dawn approaching, holding my breath and cutting back on sleep, I’ve prepared and prepared for this moment.
I won’t be satisfied with just not embarrassing her.
I will become someone worthy of the singer Yoo Gaeul.
That’s why I’m standing here.
And after what felt like an eternity, the rapid passage concludes.
It comes to an end.
There were no mistakes.
Having perfectly completed her role, she put down the piano and grabbed the microphone to start the chorus.
Gaeul had turned slightly to look at me.
I looked at her too.
“I’ll make you smile.”
“I’ll make that moment happier.”
Just like the day we first smiled at each other.
Like flowers blooming.
“That’s the duty of a song.”
*
After successfully finishing her stage better than ever, the legendary R&B singer Lena Shin’s face, initially filled with confidence, had stiffened.
As she brushed away the goosebumps on her arms, she lamented,
“…Where did that monster come from?”
While the camera captured Lena Shin’s expression, the MC announced the audience’s judgment loudly.
“Yoo Gaeul’s Love rating is an unbelievable 97%!”
*
[Name – Yoo Gaeul (Female)]
[Appearance – A+ Potential A+]
[Vocal – A Potential S] → [Vocal – A+ Potential S]
[Dance – B Potential B]
[Rap – C- Potential B+]
[Acting – D+ Potential D+]
[Variety – C- Potential C-]
[Management Evaluation – In an environment where no one looked out for her, she had to learn how to protect herself and her family before growing up. She became accustomed to giving up. Choosing to bear the weight of responsibility over the blossoming of her own talents was part of that giving up. Her way of thinking didn’t change even after choosing to become an idol through various ups and downs. Instead of enjoying singing, she approached it as a duty and a tool to shoulder other responsibilities. However, it is believed that she could finally infuse her pure emotions into singing thanks to the successful management. Just because potential is S doesn’t mean everyone can bloom into an S talent. It’s all too common for brilliant talent to fade after facing bumps, breaks, and setbacks. But she will soon reach the peak named S. And then people will call her by the name of a goddess.]
[As a reward for successful management, a ‘Non-Slipping Reinforced Hammer’ will be granted.]