“Ugh, that was too short.”
Hyuna had been muttering that phrase all the way from Incheon International Airport to the parking lot. Their quick, spur-of-the-moment trip lasted only a single night and two days, and it clearly left her wanting more.
“That’s how you know it was a good trip.”
“I know, but still…”
“Let’s go traveling again soon.”
Hearing that, Hyuna perked right up. She nodded eagerly as if that would ease her regret.
Clack.
Once Hyunseung confirmed that both his father and Hyuna had gotten into the car, he pulled away – in a direction different from the one leading to their old house. He worried they might find it suspicious, but they were evidently too exhausted from the trip; before long, he could hear them both breathing softly, fast asleep.
So Hyunseung drove on alone, letting the hum of the engine serve as the beat while he turned over a new melody in his head.
“Oppa… how much farther?”
A bleary-eyed Hyuna had just woken up.
“We’re almost there.”
“Huh? But where is this place?”
Hyuna looked around, confused at the unfamiliar neighborhood. She expected to be heading home, but what she saw outside the car windows was a place she had never seen before.
“Is this really the way to our place?”
Hyunseung just gave a vague answer.
“Guess we’ll see…”
He’d wanted to surprise them by showing off their new house in person, which was the main reason he decided to take this short trip now. With Manager Kim’s help, he’d secretly finished all the moving arrangements and had the new apartment cleaned. He couldn’t simply reveal everything prematurely, so all he could do was give noncommittal responses.
Sure, it’s partially a lump-sum deposit with monthly payments, but…
It was still a brand-new apartment in a prime location of Seoul. Great infrastructure, transportation, good schools, safety—he and Manager Kim had carefully chosen this place.
“Here we are,” he said once they arrived. “Time to get out.”
“Where is this place?”
“Wake up Dad first.”
At Hyunseung’s suggestion, Hyuna gently shook their father awake. He looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings, startled.
– Where are we?
– Dad, this is our last stop on the trip, Hyunseung signed with a playful smile.
His father only managed a confused nod but followed Hyunseung cautiously. Soon enough, they reached the main entrance of a residential building in the parking garage, and Hyunseung pulled out a resident keycard from his pocket.
“Oppa, is this some kind of Airbnb?” Hyuna asked.
“Huh?”
“You said it was the last stop on our trip—so are we spending an extra night here?”
Hyunseung ignored her questions and kept walking a few steps ahead.
– Doors closing.
They all stepped into the elevator, which shot upward at a quick speed.
Ding—!
Before long, it came to a stop. Hyunseung led them out and paused at one of the apartment doors.
“Come on, this way.”
He took the keycard from his pocket and tapped it on the door’s lock. A lively beep sounded, and the door unlocked. Hyunseung stepped inside first, opening the secondary door. Then he turned around to see his father and Hyuna still hovering by the entrance.
“Come on in.”
Eyes wide like a rabbit, Hyuna spoke cautiously.
“Wow, oppa, that’s so ‘bak bak’…”
“Bak bak?”
“I meant to say ‘daebak, daebak’ (super awesome).”
“Why shorten everything so much?”
While Hyuna and their father slowly looked around the entryway, Hyuna murmured in awe,
“Whoa…”
Then she swallowed and said,
“I’ve always wanted to live in a house like this…”
She pulled her father’s hand to lead him toward the living room’s large windows.
“Dad, look at that view—it’s the Han River… amazing.”
Hyunseung raised an eyebrow.
“You like the Han River?”
“Of course!”
“What’s so great about it?”
Hyuna thought for a moment.
“Just looking at it makes me feel refreshed!”
Hyunseung mumbled, “I see,” as he joined her in gazing at the river through the window.
These days, so many people dreamed of living in a place that overlooked the Han River. Some people even said their life goal was to have a river view apartment. But to Hyunseung, it was just a river. An expanse of water that had flowed forever, mocking countless passersby; who knew how many lost souls had ended up there? To him, it meant nothing.
As he mused, Hyuna was still wandering excitedly around the apartment. She came out of the kitchen with another burst of enthusiasm:
“Wow, the kitchen is huge! Let’s go grocery shopping later and cook our own dinner! I’ve never seen a kitchen this big!”
Then she headed for the spacious bathroom.
“What the heck?! Look at this tub—it’s so big I might drown if I’m not careful! I should’ve bought bath bombs or something!”
Exploring each room in turn, she opened a bedroom door—
“Huh?”
She left that room with a puzzled look and rejoined Hyunseung in the living area.
“Oppa, what’s going on?”
“What?”
“Why are my textbooks and study materials in that bedroom?”
Even before he could answer, she began opening the other bedroom doors.
“See? Over here are Dad’s clothes, all in boxes… And in this room, there’s composer gear set up, like a full studio station!”
Of course, Hyunseung couldn’t have thrown away their old clothes and belongings; he’d moved them in. So it was impossible to hide all the evidence of the move.
“Well, guess I’m caught.”
He scratched the back of his head, then spoke up:
“Didn’t you just say you’d love to live in a place like this?”
“…Yeah?”
“Then why not live here?”
He added:
“Let’s live here, in this house.”
Hyuna’s eyes wavered.
“No way…”
She was well aware of how successful Hyunseung’s songs had been—sweeping the top charts, recognized in so many online communities and even on the streets of Japan.
“So we’re really going to… live here?”
Stunned, Hyuna hurriedly explained to their father:
– Dad, apparently this is our home now!
Their father looked just as bewildered. Hyunseung signed:
– Dad, from now on, this is where you, Hyuna, and I will be living.
He certainly couldn’t blame their father for being shocked. After all, the man had spent years sleeping in the living room of a tiny 10-pyeong (about 33m²) hillside unit, giving the two kids the bedroom. Now, out of nowhere, they were in a spacious new apartment in central Seoul, large enough to run around in.
– We couldn’t buy it outright just yet—timing and finances didn’t line up for a full purchase—but we got it under a special deposit arrangement. My plan is to write a couple more hit songs by the end of the year and then buy something even bigger than this. Until that happens, we’ll stay here.
Seeing how mature his son had become, the father seemed at a loss for words.
– I’ll earn the money, so please don’t worry about anything.
He hadn’t even gotten the royalties from Jung Arin’s music yet, but the first round of royalties from Seo Jini’s album alone had earned more than enough to secure this place and still leave him with a solid cushion. It wasn’t at all unrealistic.
In his past life, he’d never really worried about money either, thanks to his composing.
– Hey, Dad, how’s the sofa? A person I work with—he helps me a lot—got it for us as a housewarming present.
– It’s really comfortable.
– He said it’s a 100% genuine leather recliner sofa. He asked me not to mention the price…
Hyuna tilted her head.
“Oppa, there’s a receipt right here…”
“Huh?”
“See? This is the sofa’s receipt.”
Hyunseung rolled his eyes.
“Well, so much for keeping it secret…”
Still, he had to admit it was a nice, high-end sofa—extremely comfortable.
“Feels great…”
He plopped down. What exactly changed? In his past life, he’d had a ton of money too—enough to be called astronomical. Yet something was different now, making this place feel so cozy. What changed to make it feel so warm…?
The next day.
“Composer-nim! Would you put your phone down and just try some of this?”
Jung Arin had come to Hyunseung’s studio with her arms full of pastries.
“I told you, I’m not interested.”
“They’re really good, though!”
“Then you eat them.”
He finally tore his eyes away from his phone, glancing at her.
“Don’t you have a busy schedule right now? Shouldn’t you be working somewhere?”
“I am super busy!”
“So why are you here bothering me? Go do your job.”
In truth, Jung Arin was going through a brutal schedule these days. But her bright, outgoing personality was a perfect fit for variety shows, so she’d gotten cast on several. She’d even stood out on radio, landing her own show. The more you gave her a stage, the better she seemed to do. You could say it was innate talent: she knew how to grab an opportunity.
Of course, she hadn’t “beaten” KOK outright, if you were going by wins and losses. But given the handicap of being a new female solo artist, she’d done extremely well—enough to be considered a rookie star to watch. That was something to be proud of.
“I finally had a little free time, so I went out of my way to buy these from a famous bakery. Eating one would really make my day, you know?”
“I keep telling you I don’t like sweet things.”
“Come on, thanks to you, everything’s been going so well for me—I’ll let you have it just this once.”
She took a big bite of the pastry, looking delighted. With her insane schedule, she rarely got to eat something like this in peace.
“Oh, right! I heard Seo Jini-sunbae just finished her Japanese showcases and is getting a massive response locally. Looks like her title track is staying high on the Oricon chart. I guess your music is truly amazing, Composer-nim. You’re the best in the whole world!”
She shot him a thumbs-up with cream on her finger, rattling off nonstop praise. Hyunseung, showing little interest, casually responded,
“Is that so?” and asked calmly, “Then can you do me a favor?”
“A favor?”
Arin narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
“You want me to be quiet, right?”
“No, not that.”
“If it’s something I can help with, I’d be glad to.”
This was the man who usually acted like he lived in a world all his own. The word favor didn’t quite fit him.
“What is it? Are you sure I can help?”
Hyunseung answered matter-of-factly,
“It’s nothing big. I keep trying to ask someone out on a date, but they keep turning me down.”
She blinked, wondering if she’d heard him right.
“Huh…? You keep getting rejected?”
He nodded gravely, staring at his phone.
“Yeah… not sure how many times now.”
Arin studied him. He was tall, handsome, immensely talented—yet… he definitely had some personality flaws. It made sense he might scare people off.
It’s not just about looks after all, she thought. A guy’s personality can blow it. Maybe he needed to fix that rather than his pickup lines.
“Composer-nim,” she began carefully.
“What exactly did you say when you asked them out?”
“I have three standard lines.”
“And I’m supposed to pick the best one?”
“Pretty much.”
“All right, let’s hear them.”
She braced herself. Hyunseung cleared his throat.
“First line: ‘I’ll give you my weekend, so will you give me yours?’”
She made a face.
“Seriously? You’re actually saying that to invite someone on a date?”
“You don’t like it?”
“Absolutely not. Next. What’s number two?”
Hyunseung scratched his head.
“Second line: ‘Wanna date me, or would you rather die?’”
“I’d rather die. Next, third?”
“Third: ‘Saturday, Gangnam Station Exit 5, 2pm, short stuff.’”
“That sounds more like a duel than a date invitation!”
Hyunseung shrugged.
“That’s it. Which one do you think is best?”
She gaped, horrified.
They’re all terrible. No wonder he got rejected.
“That’s all you’ve got?”
He nodded and glanced at his phone again. The screen read “Thump-Thump Some-Some High School!” It was a flashy “dating sim” game. After losing big on his “no-money investment” in his old island game, he’d lost interest in it and stumbled across Some-Some High School, which turned out to be weirdly enjoyable.
“Don’t you have any more normal options?” Arin asked.
“No.”
“If you’re sticking with a concept, you might as well go all the way,” she sighed.
“Number one is the least horrible, I guess.”
As soon as she picked, Hyunseung’s eyes lit up.
“Ooh—?”
He jumped to his feet, phone in hand.
“Did they respond right away?” she asked.
“They just accepted. Finally.”
Smiling with satisfaction, he muttered,
“Turns out a girl does know best when it comes to other girls.”
“I bet she’s really different from me.”
“I was a bit unsure about the first line. Thought it might be too bland.”
“It is bland. Guess she has special taste…”
Seeing how pleased he was, Arin cracked a faint smile. Though it was a bit of a misunderstanding on multiple levels, she felt oddly proud. But she was dying to talk about it.
I wonder if Manager Kim knows?
This unstoppable composer, who seemed immune to normal relationships, was actually chasing after romance?! The word “love” felt so mismatched with him, and yet he was out there looking for it.
I can’t wait to spill the news!
Her mind spun with the growing misunderstanding.
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