Pen and Paper Translations

Inside the production meeting room for the drama “Red Thread” it was practically a festival.

And with good reason.

Title: Only After the Flower Has Faded

Artist: HS

Original composer: HS

Arranger: HS

Not only had HS made the song, he had even participated as the vocalist himself, so the reaction was only natural.

“Great! With this we can haul up the early ratings somehow!”

When the directing producer Jang Min-oh slapped the table with a “tak” and shouted, the others also broke into happy applause.

In that applause was a budding expectation for incentives.

In fact, in the case of this “Red Thread,” because the network was putting a lot of muscle into it as a special drama for a programming shake-up, everyone’s eyes and interest were focused on it.

Since another production team had even stepped up to supply extra staff, the shoulders of Jang Min-oh, the overall director, had only grown heavier.

But. now he felt almost light enough to fly, as if wings had sprouted.

“We’re going with this, no matter what.”

That one offhand line he had tossed out.

“Don’t even look at revisions.”

That one line he’d blurted out, trusting blindly in his hunch alone.

“Use exactly what I’m hearing now.”

Who’d have thought it would produce results like this.

As a rule, an OST is inserted into key scenes of a drama, heightens them, and often draws power from the atmosphere those scenes give off.

But he could be sure the main soundtracks that had passed through HS’s hands this time would be different. That too was a hunch that had flown in out of nowhere.

Right.

Maybe the drama would really reap big benefits from the OST.

“Everything’s going smoothly. Now we just have to film well! Put your lives on the line, everyone!”

Somehow, before Jang Min-oh’s eyes he could almost see the headline: [ “Red Thread” conquers the small screen; a mega-hit born from director Jang Min-oh’s hands… ].

“Oh, Director…”

Even Ahn So-jeong, who normally had not a drop of ingratiating sweetness, stuck up a thumb at him and grinned.

“I never imagined HS would be the one singing. Your gut was on point, huh?”

To that, Jang Min-oh answered in a modest tone.

“I just got lucky, that’s all.”

Right. Even the mighty Jang Min-oh, how could he have known HS would suddenly reach out saying he wanted to take on production?

How could he have known HS would personally sing a guide and send it?

“Really, this time luck was on our side.”

Just as he said… Fortune named HS had rolled right in.

---

Lee Hyo-eun deliberately called Hyunseung out to match the café’s closing time where she worked.

If Hyunseung really was the composer HS….

She thought a place where people would notice them might make it hard to talk comfortably.

“From here on I’ll finish closing by myself. You look tired. Go on home a little early today.”

“C’mon, how could I?”

“It’s really fine. Go ahead and head out!”

“R-really?”

A little later, Seon-a, who had no idea HS would be coming to the shop, simply flung off her uniform, saying, “Hyo-eun, you’re an angel!”

“Good work!”

Then, excited, she zipped out of the shop.

All right, now….

“Let’s hurry and finish closing!”

There were about thirty minutes until the appointment time, so she rolled up her sleeves to get it done within that.

He might show up earlier than the set time, so she had to hurry even more.

— ♬ ♬ ♬

When she turned the in-store speaker volume up a little, Hyunseung’s voice sounded even grander.

Leaving “letter” on loud, set to repeat, Lee Hyo-eun threw herself into the closing clean.

How much time passed?

Amid the song, footsteps mixed in.

When she turned her head, a man with the hood on his field parka pulled low ambled into the shop.

“Hyunseung?”

Judging from the height easily over 180 and the slim yet sturdy build, it seemed to be Hyunseung….

‘Why no reply?’

Standing by the counter, Lee Hyo-eun immediately turned the speaker volume down to minimum and asked again,

“Is that you, Hyunseung?”

Only then did the man, perhaps hearing her voice, answer “Yeah,” and push his hooded cap back.

“Doesn’t it hurt your ears?”

With a furrowed brow, Hyunseung rubbed his ear and added,

“If you listen this loud on speakers with poor acoustics, you’ll wreck your ears.”

To Lee Hyo-eun now, even that dry remark from Hyunseung sounded so very kind.

Anyway, wasn’t it nagging out of concern?

“Ah, uh-huh…! I’ll be careful.”

Then, loosening the hair she’d tied tight, she continued,

“That aside, you’re early!”

“Yeah, the traffic wasn’t bad.”

“What do you want to drink? Say anything!”

“I’ll just do an iced Americano, venti size.”

“It’s late. Are you okay having coffee?”

With a light nod, Hyunseung answered, “It’s still early evening.” Ah, right. He was a composer.

She’d seen variety shows cover composers’ daily lives, and most said their schedules were irregular and they often stayed up all night.

‘Is his health okay?’

She studied him with a worried face for a beat.

“I’ll make the coffee and bring it up. Want to go sit upstairs first?”

“No, I’ll wait.”

With that, Hyunseung crossed his legs and sat on the chair right near the counter.

‘Wow…’

Following him with her eyes, Lee Hyo-eun stared, spaced out. No, was this even real?

How did he grow up this well? With the schoolboy look gone and a grown man’s poise beginning to settle in, his face shone even more.

Ah. To be a composer with a face like that. Isn’t that wasting it too much? If it were me, I’d debut as an idol right away and devour not just show business but the whole ecosystem….

 “Hm?”

With a puzzled look, Hyunseung tilted his head.

“What are you spacing out?”

“Ah, sorry.”

Realizing she’d been staring too openly, Lee Hyo-eun hurriedly turned her body toward the coffee machine.

Tak, tak, whirrrrr!

At once, with the machine’s hum, the shots poured out with a “jjoreureuk.” While waiting for the next shots, she filled a venti cup with ice and topped it with water.

And finally, she poured in the four extracted shots and brought it over. She didn’t forget to grab a long straw for the cup.

But had making coffee always been this nerve-wracking? The whole time she was making it, her hands trembled from being conscious of Hyunseung’s gaze.

Gulp.

Is this what a chef feels putting down a course for an important VIP guest?

“Here you go.”

“Thanks.”

Seeming to really like coffee, Hyunseung stuck in the straw and brought it straight to his lips.

Sip, sip.

Each time dimples dug into his snow-white cheeks, the coffee rose and fell in the clear straw.

His cheek… I want to poke it just once.

“Does it suit your taste?”

“Huh?”

“Ah, nothing.”

It wasn’t even food—after serving a mere coffee, asking if it suited his taste?

What a foolish question.

Embarrassment washing over her, Lee Hyo-eun quickly locked the shop door from the inside and headed upstairs.

“A-hem, hem.”

Once she and Hyunseung sat across at the table, a rush of shyness hit her, and she cleared her throat for no reason, glancing this way and that around the interior.

“Ah, it’s a bit messy over there….”

At that, Hyunseung gave a baffled little laugh and tapped the table with a lightly clenched fist.

Knock, knock!

In mid-air their gazes tangled.

“Don’t you already know everything? Why keep dragging it out.”

With a frustrated frown, Hyunseung spoke.

“Huh?”

“Why pretend you don’t know?”

Then he tipped up his chin and added,

“You’ve figured out who I am, haven’t you?”

Hyunseung’s eyes, bright to the point of transparency like starlight, flashed sharply.

“I hate dithering to death, so say plainly whether you will or not.”

She knew he had a cynical streak, but seeing barbs like this was new and flustering.

“A-no, it’s just….”

Lee Hyo-eun fidgeted with her fingers and hesitated for a moment.

“Yeah, I know. So if it’s not too late, could I do it?”

“If you’d been a little later, I would’ve wasted money buying the building.”

“Huh? The building?”

Saying, “Forget it,” Hyunseung cut it off and got to the point.

“I’m not telling you to become a celebrity, or to become a singer, so don’t feel pressured.”

Then he launched into a torrent without giving her a breather.

“You just have to sing the OST I produced this time well. Since it’s an OST anyway, there won’t be music-show appearances, and people won’t pay that much attention to who sang it.”

“N-no….”

“Of course royalties will be settled monthly, so don’t worry, and since we have to sign the contract and record, come by my studio soon.”

“H-Hyunseung.”

“I’ll send the guide track I cut to your phone, so just roughly memorize it. Keep your schedule clear for about a week.”

“W-wait!”

Unable to get a word in, lips only opening and closing, Lee Hyo-eun suddenly slammed her hands on the table, shot to her feet, and shouted.

“I—I don’t want to remain a nobody who sang an OST with no name and no face!”

At that, Hyunseung blinked, flustered, with a “Huh?”

“The truth is, since I was little my dream was to be a singer. I don’t have talent, I’m not particularly pretty, and my home situation is kind of….”

Trailing off, she bit down hard on her lower lip for a moment.

“Anyway, for various reasons I just buried it in my chest and lived.”

With eyes gleaming with resolve, she faced Hyunseung.

“I, as a singer…”

When she actually spoke out the dream she’d kept sealed up inside and only drawn alone, the yearning she’d thought small boiled up like a volcanic eruption.

“No… I want to sing on a stage.”

At first she’d treated him like some business scheme and ran away; then, having learned he was a hotshot composer, here she was, flat-out saying she wanted to be a singer.

Even to herself, it felt like she was forcing something absurd on Hyunseung.

But a chance like this never comes easily.

‘I have to grab it.’

Beyond the dream itself, if she got on stage and her face became known, maybe the dad who left home would recognize her and reach out.

Then… like when she was little, maybe she could nestle into her dad’s arms and, just once, act spoiled that things had been so hard.

Maybe.

She could become independent from her mom….

“…….”

With no customers and even the music switched off, a harsh stillness flowed through the shop.

Silence is as good as refusal.

Watching Hyunseung’s firmly closed lips, Lee Hyo-eun dropped her head.

‘If I were Hyunseung I’d be offended too….’

Right.

Even now she should apologize and ask him to pretend he hadn’t heard. Could he at least let her sing the OST—she had back rent to pay.

Shame is only for a moment.

Hyunseung would probably pretend not to have heard this too.

‘Screw up your courage and say it.’

Just as Lee Hyo-eun lifted her head again to open her mouth..

“I didn’t mean what I just sa—”

“Do it.”

A very short answer came back.

“Huh?”

“Just do it.”

“N-no….”

“You should live doing what you want to do.”

“It’s not like you can do something just because you want to….”

“You asked because you knew I’m HS, didn’t you?”

“N-no, I just wondered if I could maybe get a little help….”

Casually, Hyunseung pulled out his phone and answered on the spot.

“I told you to do it because it’s within my power.”

Then, as he placed a call somewhere, he added,

“Only, from now on you’re a singing potato.”

“A singing potato?”

“Yup. Potatoes can’t talk back. Only answers.”

Not even understanding what he meant, Lee Hyo-eun giggled and nodded.

“Okay! I’m a singing potato!”

Not knowing at all that a rough road of ordeals was waiting in her future.

---

T/N: Whatever’s ahead, it can’t be worse than dealing with her abusive mom.