Gu Mingi walked with his shoulders practically folded in half to avoid brushing against people. As if the slightest touch would spread a contagious disease.
It was not that he had something like mysophobia. He was simply a timid person who disliked crowded places.
There was a time when he became a complete 180 though.
It was when he stood on stage.
To be precise, in the very moment he captured music with hand signs and body movement, he was more confident than anyone.
He was “Handarbeit,” who worked as a sign language performance artist. Since he usually prepared alone when a booking came in and then performed, he had virtually no reason to interact with anyone.
It was not common for him to head to a practice studio like now.
For him, home was his practice studio.
But.
He could not help it, since he would not be practicing alone this time.
‘Min Hyunseung…’
The man who suddenly contacted him, saying he wanted to learn sign language performance from him.
That man offered to pay ten million won as a fee in the name of choreography and instruction for a single song.
At first, it was absurd.
How rich did you have to be to casually put out that kind of fee?
To be honest, he had been tempted by the fee. Although the job title “sign language performance artist” sounded fancy, there were not many who sought him out, so the income was not much to speak of.
But he had not chosen this line of work for the money, so he refused. He did not want to teach someone who would not explain his reason for wanting to learn.
In the first place, he did not want to do anything together with someone else.
No.
Maybe it was an embarrassing emotion called inferiority.
That person made him think that sign language performance was just something you could pay to learn as a hobby.
However the person called Min Hyunseung did not give up easily. He sent email after email, and the fee he offered kept going up.
That did not mean what he wrote in the emails sounded earnest.
For example…
[ Ten million won “for one song choreography + instruction,” deal? ]
[ Fifteen million won “for one song choreography + instruction,” deal? ]
[ Twenty million won to make choreography for a single song and teach it. ]
At first he wondered if the other was making fun of him.
However he made up his mind at the last email that arrived.
[ The song “Dear my Beethoven” absolutely must be done as a sign language performance. I will wait for your reply. ]
After several quiet days, the sudden email for the first time used a polite tone and did not mention money.
Maybe he had circumstances. Right, just as I have something I cannot say, that person probably has at least one such circumstance too.
He decided because the song he wanted to learn was exactly “Dear my Beethoven.” I should do this.
This song…
Also carried an enormous meaning for Gu Mingi.
Right. Since I decided to teach him, I should teach him properly.
The person “Min Hyunseung” whom he met in person was more earnest than he had expected.
He did not show laziness or dawdling even once during practice.
He seemed to find it quite hard, but he never said they should stop.
Ah.
‘Even though his body movement is a bit paltry…’
He had still made quite a lot of progress lately.
That person then suddenly made an additional request…
Namely to teach other people as well.
It was basically just a matter of teaching the sign performance that had already been set, and since an appropriate fee would be paid too (*he originally insisted on paying a ridiculous fee, so I suffered trying to talk him down), there was nothing particularly difficult about it.
Surprisingly, teaching was rewarding.
He had definitely come to the practice studio with a light heart.
‘What on earth is this…?’
When he opened the practice room door and stepped in, familiar faces were huddled together stretching.
That was not the problem.
The issue was that those familiar faces were familiar not because he knew them personally, but because he had seen them on TV many times.
‘That person is definitely…’
Was that not Seo Jini, who had been a pillar of his heart during her active years?
Next to him looked like Jung Arin, whom he had seen a lot in sports drink ads.
And…
From the audition program winner Yoon Jaeyi to the most recently debuted Lee Hyoeun.
Furthermore, were the tall guys standing beside them Kang Hajun and Ahn Jiho?
In fact, even among them, Min Hyunseung’s face did not fall behind at all.
No, if anything, he had the feel of an actor mixed in among singers.
He had even wondered if the guy was a trainee or a rookie actor and tried searching his name on a portal site, but nothing came up.
‘Well, it might not be his real name.’
Then just what was this person named Min Hyunseung? Was he someone of the level to put together a joint stage with such famous singers?
‘What is this, really…?’
While Gu Mingi stood at the entrance, unable to step in or step back out, spacing out—
“Why are you standing there without coming in?”
Having noticed him, Hyunseung strode over and asked.
“Are those the people you wanted me to teach in addition…?”
“Yes. Why?”
“It is just… I feel like I have seen them a lot on TV…”
“They are entertainers, so of course you would.”
Hyunseung lifted his shoulders, as if he could not understand what was surprising.
No ordinary person could fail to be surprised in this situation, could they?
Does that person truly not get it?
“Everyone, attention.”
As if he really did not get it, Min Hyunseung gestured toward him and continued.
“This is Teacher Gu Minggu, who will be teaching the choreography from now on. Say hello.”
“It is not Gu Minggu, it is Gu Mingi…”
“Is it? But what does it matter, as long as it is more or less similar.”
No, just how are Gu Mingi and Gu Minggu similar.
Clap clap clap clap—!
Under the shower of applause aimed at him, Gu Mingi’s face reddened. In his life, getting applauded by celebrities was another first…
Honestly, if there had been a mouse hole, he would have wanted to crawl in.
Before long, they came up one by one to greet him, and that alone drained his energy as if sapping his strength.
“Teacher Minggu, we look forward to your guidance today!”
“My name is Gu Mingi…”
“Your name is really cute.”
“I… I am Gu Min…”
“Teacher Minggu, you are very shy, right?”
“No, I am not Minggu, I…”
In the end, Gu Mingi gave up correcting his own name.
“I have never taught this many people, so I do not know if I will do well, but…”
Before fully starting the class, he carefully opened his mouth.
“Since everyone’s base level is outstanding, I believe you will follow well, and I will do my best…”
It did not take long before the wavering anxiety in his eyes changed at once.
…
…
…
“I told you repeatedly, you have to bring out the detail in your fingertips.”
At that, Hyunseung answered, “Yes…” and hung his head low.
“Whoa…”
The others in the room, seeing that through the practice mirror, covered their mouths as if in shock.
“Let us rest a moment, then go again.”
When Gu Mingi finished saying that and stepped a little away from the group to drink water, Hyunseung’s cohort all chattered with one voice.
“This is my first time seeing the composer getting scolded.”
“Well, he is in the position of a learner right now.”
“But he really has zero talent for dance.”
The people gathered here were all Hyunseung’s instruments, who had each once done time locked in the booth and gone through hell again, had they not?
The Hyunseung they saw from beyond the booth window had always been sharp, a fanatic who pursued perfection beyond perfection.
But.
The Hyunseung they saw through the practice mirror today looked like a very clumsy new trainee.
“I can hear everything.”
Hearing their whispering, Hyunseung furrowed his brow and added:
“You all are next, so watch yourselves. He is a sadist.”
Over their heads, a question mark popped up along with this line:
‘That is you.’
In any case, there were those who felt glad to see a new side of Hyunseung. For example, someone like Kang Hajun…
‘So even Godchis gets scolded when he meets a fanatic from another field. I have to write this in my diary today.’
Just then, having finished his water, Gu Mingi clapped his hands together vigorously.
“Alright, let us go from the top again.”
…
…
…
Hyunseung felt glad he had set the practice studio rental to twelve hours.
Why?
Because looking at the clock, they were already over eleven hours. If they had cut it close, he felt like they would have been dragged out onto the street and kept practicing.
“Huff, huff…”
After eleven hours, the room held only heavy breathing, searing heat, and the thick smell of sweat.
“Let us go one more time.”
Yet there was not a single person dropping out. They were people who had been trained by Hyunseung in the first place, were they not?
At this level, they figured it was still on the lenient side, and they forced their trembling legs to stand.
They had also cleared their schedules completely, so they had no excuse to leave.
Clap—!
Before long, Gu Mingi’s hands met in midair as if satisfied.
“The detail is somewhat lacking, but it seems everyone has at least memorized the choreography now, so I am satisfied.”
He looked over the faces of people who seemed about to throw up on the spot, then smiled faintly and added:
“Next time, let us aim to nail all the details. You have all worked hard.”
Then he returned to timid mode, hastily packed his things, and hurried out of the practice room.
Clack!
Once the door closed, everyone inside collapsed to the floor as if a cutting wind had swept through.
“Ugh, I feel like stomach acid keeps coming up…”
“I already went to the bathroom and threw up once.”
But Hyunseung alone was still standing firm.
Whish, whish.
To practice the fingertip detail that kept being pointed out, he stretched his hands several times in the air.
Watching from the floor, Hyunseung’s cohort turned their heads and shared glances among themselves.
People might say Hyunseung was more obsessive than anyone when he worked, but there had to be a reason he was preparing the stage for his own fan meeting with more effort than when an idol prepares for a comeback.
Moreover, it was not dancing to some trendy idol song. There had to be a story behind preparing a sign language performance to his own song.
Maybe they were all of the same mind, because suddenly everyone got up.
Then they immediately took their places again, met Hyunseung’s eyes through the mirror, and stood ready.
At that moment.
Ahn Jiho pulled out his phone to play the music and asked:
“Shall we run it once more just among us?”
Kang Hajun shook his head and said:
“The rental here does not have much time left, so let us move to the LS building practice studio and continue there.”
“As someone who is not under LS Entertainment, I feel a little sad.”
“Mm, I will make a special exception so you can come along.”
“Thank you, senior.”
For a moment, there was a subtle clash of energy between Kang Hajun and Ahn Jiho.
“Then shall we all move to the practice room together?”
Mediating the situation, Lee Hyoeun waved her hand in the air and gathered up her things.
By the time everyone had finished getting ready to go out, the most senior among them, Seo Jini, asked like she was keeping discipline:
“No one has a schedule tomorrow, right?”
“Yes! I have nothing tomorrow!”
“I cleared about three days.”
“Should we not clear a week?”
“Ah, um…”
Watching that, a very faint smile bloomed on Hyunseung’s lips.
In life.
A day comes when you receive help from others, he thought.
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