Chapter 89
“This… song?”
“Ah, no.”
Dan Ha’s face looked so fierce that I unconsciously shrank back.
“?”
“Sorry. I misspoke…”
“No, go ahead. You want to rearrange this, don’t you?”
“Yes and no…”
Why did I have to catch this damn arranging bug?
I should have just stayed quiet, but my mouth betrayed me.
Why did I even think of rearranging a song that wasn’t mine?
Am I crazy?
Did I think they’d give me a song just for helping with the arrangement?
…Did I?
Huh?
Should I ask for it after rearranging?
“I just… want to try it a little.”
“I heard you were interested in composing.”
Who else but crazy composers would come to the studio at this hour?
“But I didn’t know you were this interested. Saying you want to tweak it as soon as you hear it.”
Dan Ha looked quite displeased.
“Sorry…”
“Go ahead.”
“What?”
“It’s a song I felt was lacking too. I didn’t want to give it away, so I was thinking of including it in our album or just releasing it on SoundCloud.”
“Oh…”
So he felt it too.
To a composer, a song is like a child.
It’s impossible not to feel anything about it.
“If Trainee Yoon Cheong can bring the song to life, it’s good for me too. Go ahead.”
“Then…”
I immediately adjusted my posture.
“If I refine this song well, will you give it to me?”
***
Vacation ended.
Members started returning to the dorm one by one.
“Gasp. Why is our dorm so clean?!”
“Because I cleaned it.”
“…Didn’t you take a break?”
“Taking a break makes me more uncomfortable.”
I barely slept, but I didn’t rest at all.
I was in the studio just until a moment ago.
“Unnie… what’s wrong?”
Yeon Juhong looked almost terrified.
“What?”
“If you don’t rest, you’ll die…! Do you want to become a corpse already…? Once activities start, we’ll all become the living dead anyway…!”
“…”
Better not respond.
“Did you have a good time with your families?”
“Yes! Had lots of fun. I’m preparing not to see them for the next two years.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t take that long.”
“No. I’d rather it did.”
“Why?”
Are her relations with her family bad?
It didn’t seem that way though.
“Not seeing them for that long means we’d be busy. Being busy means having lots of schedules. Which means we’re popular. I want to be popular.”
So, it was just ambition.
“Are your parents okay with that?”
“My mom told me to work hard for 20 years, and then spend 30 years traveling together.”
“…Your mom is cool…”
“My mom is a total career woman. Busier than me.”
Like mother, like daughter.
“Ugh, I’m so full I could die. I ate all the way until this morning.”
“What did you eat?”
“A full homemade meal I made myself?”
“Why don’t you make that for us?”
“This house has no ingredients… If you want my cooking, go grocery shopping.”
Seeing her cheeks chubby, it seemed the other members enjoyed their vacation as well.
Only I looked exhausted.
“Everyone, sit down.”
At my words, the members gathered around the table.
Ryu Bo-ra sat down with an apple and a knife as if it were natural, and Seo Baek-young started peeling an orange.
Yeon Juhong grabbed a bag of snacks, and Kim Geum took out a bottle of barley tea.
…Is this a girl group’s dorm or a high school dorm?
Since there was plenty to eat, I just accepted what the members offered.
“Sorry to bring up work right after you got here, but it’s a bit urgent.”
“We’re in a hurry too, so go ahead.”
Ryu Bo-ra responded to my words.
I was grateful for her words.
“I’m going to play a few songs for you now, listen carefully.”
I took out my phone and played three recorded files in succession.
About 11 minutes later, all the prepared songs ended.
“…”
“How is it?”
I anxiously asked for the members’ opinions.
Their opinions were the most important.
But the members just stared at their phones.
Hey, why isn’t anyone saying anything?
“How is it?”
I’m not usually impatient, but I tend to get a bit anxious about music.
“Um…”
“Uh…”
“Well…”
“Why can’t you talk!”
It seems I also tend to get a bit irritated.
“They’re all so good I don’t know what to say. All three… could be senior artists’ title tracks without any issue.”
“Yeah. When did you get such songs?”
Hearing their positive reactions, I felt relieved.
Thank goodness.
They liked my music.
I was worried it might not suit them.
Actually, my music style was already set, and it was hard to change.
I had to keep evolving, but changing direction completely was difficult.
Luckily, they liked it… so it worked out.
“Which song did you like the most?”
At my question, the members clammed up again.
I played the songs again in order.
It was a decision to be made carefully.
“Ah, it’s difficult. Each song feels different… Cheongcheong, you want one of these to be our debut song, right?”
“Not necessarily.”
“…?”
The members squinted at me.
“I did some calculations.”
I spread a calendar in front of them.
“It’s September now.”
“Right.”
“But if we release an album now… even if it does well…”
“Winning the rookie award would be uncertain.”
Seo Baek-young immediately caught on to my intention.
“That’s it. I really want to win the rookie award. To do that, we release a debut album at the end of the year, another in the summer, and another in the second half… that would be perfect.”
I roughly pointed to December of this year and May and September of next year.
“Of course, all three songs have to be well-received, and even then, it’s not guaranteed… but it increases our chances of winning the rookie award.”
The members seemed deep in thought.
“Everyone… we all want to win the rookie award, right?”
“Of course.”
Seo Baek-young was the most responsive to my words.
I thought Yeon Juhong would be the ambitious one, but she was surprisingly quiet.
No, she seemed to be gauging the mood.
“Juhong, do you have any concerns?”
“They’re all good… but we have to prepare for debut in just three months, right?!”
With that, the dorm atmosphere turned cold again.
“No, I also…! I also really want the rookie award… I love the schedule you suggested… but will the company do it the way we want…? Colors is famous for… not releasing albums often…”
That was true.
They were infamous for their long activity gaps.
But that wasn’t solely Colors’ decision.
Their idols also had a perfectionist tendency and anxiety, so they couldn’t perform unless they were completely sure their song was perfect.
It was a common issue among groups who composed and wrote their own songs.
“Juhong made a good point.”
Seeing Yeon Juhong looking restless, I comforted her.
“I also worry about that part. But I think it’s something we can solve.”
“…! Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Then I’m all for it!”
“Good. What about everyone else?”
Kim Geum sighed, looking at the calendar.
“It’ll be really busy.”
“Yes. It’ll be very tough.”
“Are you confident, Cheongcheong?”
Confident, huh.
Hmm.
“I’m not confident, but… I think it’s the best option.”
“That’s enough for me.”
Kim Geum grinned and stuffed two tangerines into her mouth at once.
“Let’s do it.”
Those are really sour tangerines. They’re unripe…
Now, only Ryu Bo-ra was left.
All our gazes turned to her.
Ryu Bo-ra had been silently peeling an apple the whole time.
…Shaping it like a rabbit.
“What? Is that a self-portrait or something?”
Kim Geum asked, looking displeased.
True.
It did look a bit like a grim rabbit.
“I’m…”
Ryu Bo-ra started lining up the rabbits on a plate.
There were five rabbits.
They looked cute like this.
Anyway, it was touching that she peeled apples for the members. She had a surprisingly kind side-
“I don’t like it.”
Never mind.
She was definitely a gangster rabbit.