Hyung Jinwoo remained seated on the sofa for a long time even after Hyunseung left.
In one hand, he held a small, rectangular cassette tape.
Just as Hyunseung had told him, if he moved his fingers right now and pressed just one button, he would be able to listen to the song composed for him.
However, Hyung Jinwoo did not press it. He feared greed might take hold.
Listening to just ten seconds was enough to captivate his remaining ear; if he listened to the whole thing…
He would undoubtedly want to sing.
He might find himself wanting to sing that damned music again.
“Guess I should eat.”
Hyung Jinwoo headed to the kitchen, taking a bowl of frozen rice from the freezer along his familiar, practiced path, and microwaved it.
Whirrrr.
While the microwave ran, he took off the lids of the dry side dishes arranged in order on the table and picked up disposable cutlery. Living a life where even washing dishes was a struggle, this was an inevitable choice.
Ding!
He took out the thoroughly warmed rice. When he opened the lid, steam billowed out, yet Hyung Jinwoo could not easily lift his spoon.
He just sat there in a daze until the rice went completely cold.
It was because the intro of the song he had heard earlier kept swirling in his head. Of course, sitting still was also what Hyung Jinwoo did best.
It wasn’t something he was naturally good at.
Before the accident, he had loved mingling with people outside so much that others said he had wanderlust woven into his bones.
However, ever since the day of the accident, the day he lost both eyes, he spent all his time sitting like this. Since he lacked the courage to die.
The only thing he could do was sit and pass the time.
Someone watching him might scold him for sounding so pathetic and spineless, but…
What else could he do?
There wasn’t much a blind man could do. He couldn’t even eat properly by himself.
Fortunately, the housekeeper who had managed his home before he lost his sight visited twice a month, stocking up on things that only required hot water, like cup ramyeon.
Thanks to her preparing frozen rice and a few dry side dishes before leaving, he ate just enough not to starve, and lived.
Feeling guilty that she came all the way out to this remote countryside, he had gruffly told her he couldn’t afford to give her bonuses anymore and that she should look for another household.
Still.
He could never bring himself to say that she didn’t need to come at all.
Yes.
He had no wife, no children, not even siblings.
Chomp, chomp.
Soon, Hyung Jinwoo scooped a large spoonful of rice, intentionally making loud, crude noises as he ate.
He did this because it was the only way it felt like he was actually eating.
It wasn’t as if he had lost his sense of smell or taste.
Being blind made cooking difficult, and strangely, his appetite never came.
So.
Whenever he ate, he deliberately smacked his lips loud enough to sound obnoxious. Since he ate alone anyway, there was no one to complain.
After chewing on just seaweed and dried anchovies with his rice for a while.
Step, step.
Hurriedly finishing his meal, he headed back to the living room along his memorized route. Then, he held the cassette tape in his hand once more.
As if it were a device he had used for years, the grip felt pleasantly familiar in his hand, and he fiddled with it for a long while.
No.
A sprained ankle shouldn’t make him pretend he didn’t want to walk.
He simply wanted to hear the song inside.
Truthfully.
He was well aware of Hyunseung’s fame.
The saving grace was that one of his ears was completely intact, allowing him to listen to the radio and news.
Moreover, his longtime friends Moon Beomjae and Baek Gyuho would occasionally visit his house and chatter endlessly about Min Hyunseung, making it impossible not to know.
He had heard about it until his ears were worn out.
Starting from how they came to sing a song made by Min Hyunseung, to the fact that he won a bet against Jayble.
And after that, not only did he continue his bustling activities, but he even ventured into the United States and took on a CEO position, was it?
And, also…
One day, Moon Beomjae had dropped by to vent his dismay, saying that Min Hyunseung had suddenly vanished without a trace.
He whined so much that anyone listening would have thought his beloved lover had abruptly disappeared.
He even made his stomach churn with bitterness by adding, “Just like you,” asking why geniuses always had to vanish, die, or meet with accidents.
What did I reply back then?
Right.
I think I answered that he still had himself left.
I don’t know what kind of expression I wore when saying that.
Envy had probably rippled across my face.
I want to sing, too.
Until the day I die.
I just want to sing.
It had been so hard to hold back those words that threatened to burst past his throat.
Those words he had managed to swallow down with such difficulty…
How could he dare let them surface now?
Therefore, it was right not to listen to the song on the cassette tape.
It was right, and yet…
Click.
Like a man possessed, Hyung Jinwoo pressed the play button on the cassette player.
—♫♫♫
Just as Hyunseung had instructed, pressing the leftmost button once made the song flow out as if it had been waiting to be played.
To listen to just one song…
Yes.
To press just a single button…
It took an entire hour.
—♫♫♫
The melody, woven in the unique style distinctive to the blues, gave the listener a bluesy melancholy.
Yet it also stirred a desire to resist.
From high notes down to low notes.
The song, formed in a so-called descending mode, sounded as if it were speaking for his own circumstance.
What could be called the peak…
Standing at the pinnacle of South Korean blues…
In an instant, he had fallen.
It was all because of a single, fleeting moment.
It was a mere ten seconds.
From the moment he spotted the oncoming car and froze in shock.
In just ten seconds, the speeding vehicle skidded on the rain-slicked road, crashing right into him, and at the same moment, his body went flying through the air.
Ah, so this is how a person dies.
He had thought that while gazing at the blood-stained world.
Even amidst that…
He recalled feeling sorrowful over the thought that he might never sing again.
No.
He was in bitter agony from the sheer regret.
—♫♫♫
As old memories and emotions resurfaced, the song playing now sounded all the more tempting.
You want to sing again, don’t you?
It felt as though the flowing melody kept whispering that to him.
How foolish.
After losing both eyes and one ear, he had come to realize how cold the world was, and what a ruthless, competitive society it truly was.
So.
He told himself he was merely a dropout from that competitive society.
That he was meant to just wait for the day to die while caressing his trophies, reminiscing about that fleeting glory.
For ten long years, he had suppressed himself, resolved so, and hardened his heart.
And yet.
Greed kept welling up.
Yes.
He wanted to sing.
Before long, within the silent house, Hyung Jinwoo’s voice echoed, humming along to the melody Hyunseung had created.
xxx
“When does the owner of this room say he’s coming back?”
Executive Director Park asked, lying sprawled across the sofa in Hyunseung’s private studio.
“Who knows? What kind of scheme is he cooking up this time? He sent a single text saying he was going on a picnic in Korea, and there’s been no reply since.”
Kim Woohyun sat on the opposite chair, tapping his phone as he answered.
Their postures looked so utterly relaxed, like they had come to hang out at a hideout.
Lately, as if they had made a pact, the two of them would head to Hyunseung’s private studio as soon as their work finished.
It wasn’t because they had nothing to do or were idling.
“Is he off torturing some new instrument he found again?”
“Torturing? Come on.”
“I heard the kids under LS Entertainment all fell ill after working with that kid Hyunseung. If that’s not torture, what is?”
Partly, they were worried about what kind of trouble Hyunseung might stir up next.
“He clearly said he was all done with work after Rise…”
And partly, they were concerned about Hyunseung, who seemed so unstable.
Above all.
Because Kim Woohyun had accidentally learned of Hyunseung’s current condition, he couldn’t help but worry all the more.
“Didn’t he go to meet a woman?”
Because Executive Director Park was completely in the dark, he could ask such a carefree question.
“Pardon? Hyunseung? With a woman?”
“He’s a man too.”
“I mean, sure, but—”
Does the Director really not know about Hyunseung and Sarah? Well, all he knows is work and exercise.
He knows nothing about women, which is why he hasn’t even remarried…
“No, it’s nothing.”
He almost let his inner thoughts slip out.
Executive Director Park clicked his tongue at Kim Woohyun, who had hastily shaken his head and shut his mouth, before continuing.
“Come to think of it, you worry a mountain of worries. You might as well change your name. Kim Taesan, the Mountain. It suits you.”
“Director, you came here because you’re worried about Hyunseung too.”
“Of course I’m worried!”
With that, he bolted upright from his seat and added.
“Even at this very moment, that kid’s muscle mass must be depleting at a rapid pace—how could I not worry?!”
“Phew…”
Right, he’s a man who only knows work and exercise. Let’s just understand him.
“Stop sighing like that and call him.”
Executive Director Park suggested offhandedly. Given the situation, he meant to call Hyunseung.
However, ever since learning about Hyunseung’s current condition, Kim Woohyun had somehow become hesitant to call.
“Hurry up?”
Executive Director Park, completely unaware of the truth, urged him on, gesturing with his chin toward the phone in Kim Woohyun’s hand.
Ring, ring.
Under pressure, Kim Woohyun reluctantly placed the call, pretending he was forced into it. Truthfully, he had intended to call anyway, even without the prodding.
— Yes, hello.
Soon, Hyunseung’s voice came through the receiver.
“So you didn’t lose your phone?”
— I picked up because I didn’t lose it.
“You didn’t reply for so long, I thought you’d lost it.”
— What are you sulking about this time?
“Who’s sulking?”
Contrary to the mountain of worry piled inside him, Kim Woohyun spoke gruffly.
“So, are you enjoying your picnic in Korea?”
— I’m waiting to picnic with someone, but there’s no contact at all. Looks like I got dumped.
“Who? Is it a woman? Wait, what about Sarah?”
At Kim Woohyun’s words, Executive Director Park muttered from behind, asking why Sarah was being brought up and what kind of relationship they had.
“Are you two something? Put it on speaker quietly, hurry.”
What should I do with this fool who truly knows nothing but work and working out?
Ha.
Should I, a senior in that department, give him some dating coaching?
Leaving that aside.
Why isn’t there any answer?
“Hm?”
Noticing the strange silence, Kim Woohyun checked to see if the call had ended, but it was still connected.
“Hyunseung?”
He immediately called out Hyunseung’s name in a hurried tone.
— It’s not a woman, so please stop saying weird things.
“Then who is it? You’re not meeting CEO Jeon Nam-il again, are you? What trouble are you trying to cause this time?”
— It’s not CEO Jeon Nam-il either.
“Then who on earth are you waiting for?”
Silence fell over the receiver once more.
Is this kid trying to give me a heart attack?
Then Hyunseung opened his mouth.
— Hyung Jinwoo.
This time, Kim Woohyun’s lips clamped shut.
“Hyung Jinwoo…?”
“Hyung Jinwoo…”
Soon, Executive Director Park asked softly with a startled face, and Kim Woohyun muttered along after him.
“Hyunseung.”
Just as Executive Director Park, feeling frustrated, snatched the phone from Kim Woohyun’s hand to call Hyunseung back to attention.
— Oh? Ah, I have an incoming call. I’ll hang up now.
With those words, the line went dead without ceremony.
“W-Wait a second—!”
The desperate cry shouted into the phone echoed like a hollow remnant into the silent studio.
And then he grabbed Kim Woohyun, who looked as if he knew something, and pressed him.
“When he says Hyung Jinwoo, he means the Hyung Jinwoo I’m thinking of, right?”
“Yes. It seems he’s dead set on working with him.”
“Did you know? That he was going to work with that man?”
“He did mention it in passing a while back, but…”
Recalling the look in Hyunseung’s eyes back then, Kim Woohyun furrowed his brows as if in pain.
“Ha, but no matter how I look at it, that project seems impossible.”
“Why?”
“He took too long of a break, and above all, saying one ear’s hearing is intact means he lost hearing in the other, right?”
“And?”
“It’ll inevitably be tough.”
“What’s so tough about it?”
“If you can’t hear out of one ear…”
“Exactly.”
How hurt must he have felt to hear those words from him of all people, rather than anyone else?
“Why do you jump to the conclusion that it’s going to be hard just because someone can’t hear out of one ear?”
How shattered must Hyunseung’s heart have been when he said that back then?
I should have believed those words.
Because it’s what Hyunseung does.
Even if no one else did, I should have believed in him.
“Shouldn’t we stop him?”
Executive Director Park pressed Kim Woohyun, who was lost in thought.
“He’s someone we could never stop in the first place, but now, I can stop him even less. So I’m going to support him.”
Kim Woohyun dismissed Executive Director Park’s words as if he had made up his mind.
“Is something going on with that kid?”
Meanwhile, overwhelmed by Kim Woohyun’s firm resolve, Executive Director Park asked back cautiously.
“Director.”
“What.”
“Executive Director Park.”
“What is it?”
Looking at Kim Woohyun, who merely stared at him with a heavily sunken expression, the Director sensed something was amiss.
“What are you trying to say that you’re hesitating like this?”
It can’t be anything serious.
Of course not.
What could possibly happen?
He’s a kid for whom everything unravels smoothly like toilet paper, as if the heavens revolved entirely around him.
A kid born under such divine luck, such a blessed destiny…
Nothing could be wrong.
Just as he was about to speak again with that thought in mind.
“The truth is, Hyunseung can’t hear well out of one ear right now.”
Kim Woohyun spoke first, beating him to the punch.
“Y-You expect me to believe that right now?”
“It’s the truth.”
“Why didn’t I know about such a thing?!”
Tremendously shocked, Executive Director Park grabbed Kim Woohyun with trembling eyelids and asked repeatedly.
“H-How… How did you find out?”
“I accidentally overheard a conversation between Teacher Lee Duseok and Hyunseung.”
Kim Woohyun, of all people, would never utter such nonsensical words regarding Hyunseung.
“N-No, that makes no sense…”
If so, that means it’s true, but how could that be?
That kid Hyunseung was just like always—he laughed, ate well, worked just fine, did everything.
And I…
I just made sarcastic remarks to him, asking if he was blinded by money.
Of course.
It wasn’t that I didn’t worry, but I thought Kim Woohyun’s worry alone was enough, so I shouldn’t add to it.
And yet…
If it’s like this, how am I supposed to look him in the eye out of sheer guilt?
“He didn’t seem to want to talk about it, so I pretended not to know, but I thought you should at least be aware, Director.”
Kim Woohyun added, looking straight at Executive Director Park, who was shaking his head in frantic denial.
“Director!”
Before long, Kim Woohyun hastily called out to Executive Director Park, who suddenly kicked his chair back and tried to leave.
“Exercise.”
“Pardon?”
“I’m going to exercise.”
With those words, Executive Director Park walked right out of the studio.
His back seemed uncharacteristically small today.
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