Pen and Paper Translations

Sarah stared straight at Hyunseung with eyes like lanterns on fire.

‘What is going on?’

It was clearly the same melody line, but the vibe had changed.

Originally, it should have been carried all the way to the chorus in a minor, negative-leaning mood…

The song had suddenly transformed into something plucky and bright.

─ ♬ ♬ ♬

By the time the song passed the chorus and reached the final bridge section—

Thud!

She dropped the new pouch of misutgaru she’d just torn open onto the floor.

Even as the thick grain drink soaked her snow-white sneakers and pooled across the floor, Sarah didn’t so much as twitch.

“Hey, you made the floor dirty.”

Hyunseung frowned when he noticed and scolded her, but…

“Quiet.”

Sarah ignored him and kept every nerve taut until the song ended.

Honestly, if chords and melody were a single dish, she wanted to take it apart, chew it, tear it, and taste it all. How can it taste like this?

What ingredients did he use, and with what recipe…

Above all, how did he make a completely different-tasting dish out of the same ingredients in just one day?

Of course, if both versions had been mediocre, she wouldn’t be wondering about any of this.

Right.

Because it wasn’t mediocre! Because it was a flavor that put her in ecstasy! Because it was tastier than misutgaru!

“H-hey, you!”

As soon as the track ended, Sarah called out to Hyunseung in a heated tone.

S-sscrape, s-sscrape.

Hyunseung, who’d been wiping up the spilled misutgaru on the floor, lifted his head to look at her.

“What? You feel like you have to hear it once more, don’t you?”

Sarah nodded, and at the same time, replayed the track herself.

Once, twice, three times.

While Hyunseung carefully wiped so no stickiness from the misutgaru remained, Sarah listened to the song on repeat.

No—

It might be more accurate to say she ate it up.

─ Mmm, mmm, mmm.

As people naturally let out interjections when eating something delicious, scat spilled from Sarah’s mouth.

As if she were laying accompaniment over the track to create harmony.

‘Knew it. Good thing I re-did the arrangement.’

Watching her, Hyunseung wore a pleased smile.

He’d had a hunch from the first time he heard that tingling voice in the café, but this exceeded expectations.

─ Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Her voice roamed the melody freely like a single instrument, weaving a rich line.

─ Mmm, mmm, mmm.

When she’d first spoken to him like she was issuing a threat, he’d liked how, even in the low register, her pitch didn’t wobble and she released breath just right.

Then in the sharp, catty shouts, he sensed a fluttery yet solid resonance chamber, so he immediately revised the arrangement…

And of course, her freely crossing mid-to-high range also sounded quite good.

Maybe, he just liked the feeling of her bounding around on top of the track.

“Then shall we start recording now?”

At that, Sarah cut off the scat, looked at Hyunseung, and asked:

“Now? Just the two of us?”

“What, should we call in everyone and throw a party?”

“That’s not what I mean. Don’t you usually do it with the director, producer, and engineer all together?”

She glanced around the studio that held just the two of them and added:

“Do Korean composers normally do everything alone?”

Hyunseung shot back, half-chiding:

“You refused the villa because you didn’t want a place with a cleaning staff, and now you’re okay with a bunch of people crowding around?”

“N-no…”

“I’m plenty enough by myself, so stop yapping and hurry into the booth and warm up your voice.”

Sarah, nodding that she understood, carefully picked up a fresh pouch of misutgaru.

 “You’re banned from misutgaru until recording’s done.”

It was confiscated by Hyunseung within moments. Sarah’s face crumpled as if the world were ending.

I mean…

It’s just misutgaru…

“J-just one.”

Clutching the pouch in both hands, she begged earnestly.

“No.”

He shook his head firmly and simply pushed her along.

“Drink it after we’re finished.”

“Right now, just one.”

“I’ll buy you ten boxes when we’re done.”

Sarah, in a voice full of confidence, told him to keep that promise and dashed into the booth… with no idea that for the next few days she wouldn’t even get a glimpse of misutgaru.

---

Meanwhile, another grim rumor started drifting through the company.

Namely that Sarah Stewart was currently being subjected to brutal recording torture somewhere inside the LS Entertainment building.

“But doesn’t that sound believable enough if it’s HS?”

“Hey, no way! That’s ridiculous!”

Jian from accounting waved a hand, unable to believe it.

“A friend in Management said it looked serious, judging by the official letters going back and forth with Unice Music Group.”

As the other accountant spoke, Jian briefly searched “Sarah Stewart” on a portal site.

“Whoa! Sarah Stewart’s with Unice Music Group too! Then… is it real? Crazy, crazy!”

She suddenly tossed aside her spoon.

“Come to think of it, if it’s HS, impossible things aren’t exactly impossible!”

As if she’d never doubted, she started making a fuss together with the other accounting staffer.

“Not to exaggerate, but in terms of pure skill, HS is world-class.”

“Right, and a little while ago Sarah Stewart posted a ‘Villain Daddy’ video too!”

“Whoa, true! Should I post a challenge video too? Maybe then HS will notice me?”

Jian cupped both cheeks and smiled shyly, but—

“You only have 100 subs on YouTube. How’s he supposed to find it?”

A dose of reality sent her sulking at once.

“Ugh, but how have I never run into him even once in this building?”

Jian muttered, scraping her tray with her spoon for no reason. Seriously, was she even working in the same building?

Of course, she was an LS Entertainment employee, yes, but a desk worker. The areas she could enter were restricted, and the cafeteria had fixed hours, so maybe it was even harder to run into people.

Still! Even so!

Why was it harder to see him than the company’s own artists!

 “You don’t even know what Etchis’s face looks like exactly.”

The other accountant added,

“Even if you ran into him, would you be able to tell whether it was Etchis or not?”

“If he’s insanely handsome, I’d obviously know!”

“There’s more than one insanely handsome guy here. Trainees come and go all the time.”

“Still, from the fan meeting recaps, they say his aura’s on a different level…”

“So they say.”

“He’s exactly husband material for me, don’t you think?”

“I think that is… not a sound thought.”

“But he must have a girlfriend, right?”

“It’d be weird if he didn’t. Even a quick glance at the settlement sheets, his income is huge…”

“Gasp, what if Sarah is his girlfriend?”

“Hey, that’s way too much of a leap. From the timing when Sarah posted the challenge video, then not long after we heard about official letters, it sounds more like Sarah’s side put on some showmanship to request a song.”

“Oh, given the timing, that could totally be it.”

Feeling like a detective, Jian kept spinning her theory.

“Right, come to think of it, Sarah Stewart hasn’t been releasing songs at all lately. Maybe because nothing was coming out, she asked HS for a song.”

Then she grabbed up her empty tray and added:

“And ‘Villain Daddy’ is insanely hot as a challenge overseas, so maybe she wanted to ride the wave.”

Jian was definitely about to stand up after saying that.

But a pressure clamped down on her shoulder, forcing her back into her seat.

She turned her head to see a man standing there.

“Who are you?”

The cap was pulled low, hiding half his face, but the lips visible beneath the slightly lowered mask glowed red.

Then the man’s lips, perfectly symmetrical as if drawn with a ruler, parted.

“I didn’t ask HS for a song.”

A non sequitur dropped out of nowhere.

“HS said he would give a song to Sarah Stewart.”

“Excuse me…?”

“You kept barking up the wrong tree, so I figured I should set you straight.”

With that, the man, apparently done with his business, left the cafeteria without a backward glance.

However, the woman couldn’t take her eyes off the man’s retreating back.

It’s certain.

This trembling heart, that aura on a different plane from everyone else—

It’s him.

That man was HS.

If only he’d stayed a little longer…

With a wistful touch, she stroked the shoulder of her coat where his hand had rested and made a vow:

She would not wash this coat for a whole year.

---

About four days had passed since they decided to begin recording.

The process was brutally harsh.

Of the roughly four days, the time Sarah spent at Hyunseung’s home was about twelve hours total.

Which meant the only rest Sarah was allowed each day was roughly three hours.

It wasn’t the army.

How was she supposed to wash, eat, and sleep in just about three hours?

That much, she could stand.

When she got deep into a project, Sarah herself could go days without sleeping.

I’ll get revenge.

What Sarah could least tolerate was…

Every time she dragged her exhausted body to stop by Hyunseung’s place, he would snatch away the misutgaru his father had quietly saved for her, and chug it himself.

I’ll get revenge.

Glaring daggers at Hyunseung through the booth window, Sarah clung on by sheer grit. She would not collapse.

Her legs, loosened to the point of jelly, shook like crazy—

But she couldn’t flop down like a rag.

Misutgaru…

She had to finish quickly if she wanted to drink misutgaru.

“We only have one part left, so do you want to take a short break?”

HS’s voice came through the headset, and beyond the booth window she saw his infuriating face.

How deliciously he sucked down that misutgaru all by himself.

She wanted to snatch it away and slurp it on the spot, but a promise was a promise.

Shake, shake.

Sarah declined, saying she was fine, and moved back up to the standing mic, clearing her throat.

─ Ah, ah.

From the café where they first met until now, all she had were memories of losing to HS.

In battles of will, of words, of pride—and even in composing skill—she would have to admit she lost.

Which is why, at least in this recording round, she didn’t want to lose.

“Can I try running it once in a single take?”

Sarah asked.

“Do as you like.”

Hyunseung answered, face indifferent.

Soon the backing track rolled through their respective headsets.

─ What do you know about me?

Meeting Hyunseung’s eyes through the window, Sarah began to sing.

─ Yeah, just do whatever you want.

Hyunseung let out a small, amused huff.

Her body swayed as if completely immersed in the song, but her eyes glittered like she meant to devour him.

─ If you’re happy when you curse at me, do it.

You could see the will there to finish recording and finally drink misutgaru.

Truly… that woman was a weirdo.

─ But I won’t curse you.

Of course, it wasn’t as if she was surviving on grit just for a pouch of misutgaru.

Hyunseung knew that too, which is why, in directing, he couldn’t allow even an inch of concession or compromise.

─ I’m busy loving myself.

At last, every line was done.

“…”

Sarah waited silently for the sign.

When “okay” came out of his mouth, Sarah yanked the door open as if she’d been waiting for exactly that.

And then the first words out of her mouth were:

“Hurry up and buy me a box of misutgaru.”

“Are you flying out right now?”

“No, I need to check it through to the final.”

“Then I’ll buy it before you leave.”

“Why?” Sarah shot back.

“Misutgaru goes bad quickly. If you want to drink it in the States, you need to buy it right before you fly.”

Truth was, he said it because he couldn’t be bothered to buy it right now.

Of course, not knowing that, Sarah sighed, “Ah,” and nodded as if she understood.

Then she stretched out a hand.

“Then give me at least one right now.”

How long she’d waited for this moment. All those bitter days she’d swallowed and survived on sheer will rushed through her mind.

But what came out of HS’s mouth next was despairing.

“I already finished it.”

And he wasn’t joking.

“F*ck…”

Inside the trash can lay a pile of bone-dry pouches.

---

T/N: So Sarah can “taste” music… So she has synesthesia? :O