In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Chapter 32

The last stage started with the same intro as Something.

The audience was puzzled.

They were going to do the duet song they saw in the first stage as their farewell stage too?

Some frowned.

‘They’re milking it too much.’

No matter how much it topped the charts and was popular, it was too much to repeat the same song for the stage.

Everyone thought that.

Until the intro changed at the 5-second mark.

‘I thought it was good during the rehearsal, but it’s still good to hear it again.’

Ha Seung-joo, who was standing on the side, smiled.

It was a different intro from the original one.

There was a cheerful piano melody on top of the acoustic guitar intro.

And drums too.

Unlike the calm and refreshing original song, it was lively and upbeat.

Hearing the changed melody, Ha Seung-joo smiled.

‘Gyu-hwan must have tweaked it a bit.’

He could feel the touch of a professional.

Even if Seon Woojoo could compose, he wouldn’t have had time to arrange it after the appearance was confirmed.

He could smell his favorite junior composer in the small details.

‘Anyway, it’s good.’

It was wonderful that the song made by the son of his respected pianist senior was combined with the arrangement of his favorite junior composer.

It was a strange mix of flavors.

Ha Seung-joo closed his eyes and smiled all over his face.

He didn’t even notice that the production team’s camera was pointing at him.

“Pfft!”

One of the staff in the control room burst into laughter.

It was because Ha Seung-joo was smiling like a flower bud on the TV screen.

He had a cute expression somehow.

“Ha MC-nim is doing it again, right? The girlish expression he makes when he hears good music.”

“There will be another meme when the broadcast comes out.”

“I’m sure someone will capture it.”

The staff chuckled.

“This New Black episode is getting a lot of attention. Ha MC-nim’s expression and all. The story of the genius pianist, and Jang So-won’s underground life.”

“That’s right.”

The PD nodded in agreement.

“But the most important thing is now.”

It was as he said.

Ha Seung-joo’s Music Cafe was a music show after all.

They invited singers and talked about music, but the essence was to show a good stage.

Jang So-won and New Black’s talk was great.

But it wasn’t a stage.

The first stage, Something, was perfect, but the problem was that the song was too familiar to the public.

It had dominated the music charts for over a month, and by now it had accumulated enough fatigue.

That’s why they needed something new.

Something fresh.

Seon Woojoo’s jazz performance was like an appetizer for that freshness.

The main dish was from now on.

‘I hope they do it as they did in the rehearsal.’

The PD thought that when the song started.

In the original song, Jang So-won started the part by approaching Seo Ri-hyuk.

The part where the vocals were expected.

But breaking everyone’s expectations, the first member to grab the mic was none other than New Black’s rapper, Kim Jung-hyun.

He walked out confidently and sat on the chair that was set up.

My clock waiting for you

Is at 2:30 pm

When will I see your face

Can you see me being nervous

It was a rap that sounded like a song.

His powerful voice and the gentle melody seduced the audience.

Their attention rose instantly as the rap came in unexpectedly.

The next in line was Jang So-won.

Her clear voice echoed in the hall.

How long will you make me wait, what kind of face will you make

I leaned against the bus window and imagined

Where did this thrill come from?

Maybe it’s between us

Now people are starting to picture it in their minds.

A man sitting at the bus stop.

A woman going to him on the bus.

As I naturally imagined that, my mind drifted to Seon Woojoo.

Is this what love is?

Waiting is not really my thing

You’re like a spring breeze

Won’t you wait a little longer?

A third person appeared.

The audience enjoyed Seon Woojoo’s song, but also started to spread their wings of imagination in their heads.

‘Is it a love triangle?’

Some people remembered Jang So-won’s talk.

“Actually, Something was originally a song with parts for each of the New Black friends.”

“Really? Why did you drop out?”

“Well, I’m the female vocalist, but there were five male vocalists, so the atmosphere was a bit weird.”

“The atmosphere?”

“Yes, I looked like a fisherman’s wife.”

As he said, the addition of a new person made the song have a completely different vibe from the original.

The audience was curious when the main vocalist appeared.

A more cheerful atmosphere than the original version.

In that song, Seo Ri-hyuk’s rich voice filled the hall.

If you ask me what’s between us

I’d say-

I think of us as sweet candy

Slowly melting between us

I’ll cross that wall and hold your hand

I’ll hold your hand that seems to slip away

Now I’ll whisper to you

If the original version was fresh, this one was sweet and cheerful.

New Black’s expressions proved it.

Unlike the serious first stage, they were all singing in a happy mood.

The audience smiled.

At first, New Black wanted to prepare a moist song that suited the late-night mood.

Until Seon Woojoo opposed.

“It’s a stage where the star-like sunbae’s have gone. Even if we’re among the idols who sing well, it’s hard to impress there.”

He argued that it would be better to have a fun stage than to sing a difficult song to impress.

So they prepared a lively version of Between.

It was a special stage that they prepared to entertain the audience with a song that modified the original.

“They’re good.”

The PD in the control room smiled.

“They have a sense of humor when they talk, and they know how to make a fun stage, not a clumsy ballad song. I’ll remember that. There, in New Black, what was the name of the leader? I forgot.”

“It’s Woojoo.”

“Yeah. That guy.”

He thought he’d call him once when he was in charge of another music program, and the PD said.

“It’s coming soon. The highlight part.”

“Yeah.”

They focused on the dozens of monitors, including the camera that illuminated the stage, expecting the audience’s reaction.

At the beginning of the second verse, the one who held the microphone was Kim Bi-ju.

He had a voice that was distinctly different from the other members, almost like a whisper.

I miss your face

I’ll pick some spring flowers and get ready

Our sweet relationship

So you can feel the excitement

As he said that, Kim Bi-ju smiled and took out a flower.

He looked splendid.

As the five members finished their songs one by one, the people realized that the image they had of New Black was wrong.

New Black was a team where each member had their own vocal color.

If they hadn’t said they were idols, they would have believed they were just a vocal quartet.

The audience admired their singing skills, but soon tilted their heads as they listened to the lyrics.

‘What’s going on?’

Kim Junghyun, waiting for someone.

Jang So-won, taking a bus to meet a man.

Seon Woojoo, approaching someone.

And Kim Bi-ju, also waiting for someone.

‘Is this a love square?’

Like Puck, the fairy from Shakespeare’s play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, Seo Ri-hyuk and Wang Jiho were like narrators who sang about the love of the men and women.

The other four.

Their relationships seemed to be tangled and intertwined.

And as the highlight of the song began, the four on the stage moved around Seo Ri-hyuk and Wang Jiho in the center.

I’ll whisper to you now

As I hold your hand that I can’t quite grasp

Jang So-won walked towards him as if she had just gotten off the bus.

As expected, it was Kim Junghyun.

He greeted her warmly as if he was waiting at the bus stop, and they harmonized their microphones.

‘Then what about the other two?’

If Jang So-won chose Kim Junghyun, then what about the other two?

As I thought that, Seon Woojoo went to Kim Bi-ju.

Kim Bi-ju smiled and handed him a bouquet of flowers, and Seon Woojoo accepted it.

A small laugh escaped.

Seon Woojoo and Kim Bi-ju sang in harmony towards each other, and the audience laughed along without realizing it.

Some of them remembered a music video.

A man who longed for an impossible love as he watched a woman get married. But in the end, it turned out that the man was not longing for the woman, but for the man who married her. 

It was that kind of twist.

And Seo Ri-hyuk and Wang Ji-ho scattered and moved like cupids who congratulated each couple.

When the song finally ended, the audience thanked the six who had entertained them.

It was applause that filled the hall.

***

A singer knows.

Whether they did well or not in their performance. 

They don’t need to hear the applause to know naturally.

A good performance is different.

Just like a good game where everything goes perfectly from the start, a good performance flows smoothly from the beginning.

It was like that when we sang trot for our year-end evaluation.

But knowing that we did a good performance and seeing the audience’s reaction with applause and cheers were two different things.

That’s why I was smiling as I received the applause.

Jang So-won.

Bi-ju. Jung-hyun. Ri-hyuk. Ji-ho.

The members who performed with me and Sowon senior exchanged smiles and politely greeted the audience with their microphones.

“Thank you!”

I laughed involuntarily at the applause that echoed in the hall.

But what I liked the most was the expressions of the people.

The expressions of my parents in my childhood memories floated over the faces of the audience.

That was the reason why I wanted to become an idol.

***

In the car on the way back to the dorm.

It’s quiet.

Everyone is buried in their car seats, probably tired.

We had a pre-recording for a music show since morning, and then we had to wait and do a live broadcast.

But I was proud.

I felt like I had lived a very hard day.

“You guys did a great job.”

I smiled brightly.

“We finally finished our activities.”

“Phew, I can’t believe it’s over…”

“Are you relieved?”

“More than relieved, I’m sad. We were on cloud nine for a month.”

We agreed with the youngest’s words.

“But don’t you think we ended it well?”

“When people clapped for us, it was really amazing. It felt like ten times bigger than the year-end evaluation.”

“Ten times? It felt like a hundred times to me.”

“How did we do, manager?”

At Bi-ju’s question, Seok-hwan hyung, who was quiet in the passenger seat, smiled faintly.

“The reaction was good. You guys sang so well that there’s no more criticism on the internet.”

“Wow.”

“You did great, guys.”

We cheered and clapped our hands at the expert’s affirmation.

It was what we wanted.

Showing our singing skills was our goal.

“Min-ki hyung, how was it for you?”

“She was pretty.”

“Min-ki, can you send me to Hwai?”

“Ah, manager. I’m sorry. I’m distracted by holding the steering wheel.”

We burst into laughter thanks to our clumsy road manager.

Bi-ju asked me as if to confirm.

“Hyung, do you think we’ll get a good response on the broadcast?”

“The live reaction was good too.”

“It was. I think there was a woman who cheered when I gave you a flower at the end.”

“I was worried about that reaction, but I’m really glad.”

“It’s a relief.”

I nodded and smiled at Ri-hyuk.

I called the member who was quietly looking out the window.

“Jung-hyun, are you okay?”

“I was good.”

“Thank you the most today. You know without me saying it, right?”

He was the one who told me not to worry about them in the waiting room, and to make a choice for myself.

I was grateful to him.

Jung-hyun smiled silently.

It was a melancholic atmosphere for some reason.

Past 10 p.m.

In the dark car where only the street lights poured, we felt a different feeling than usual.

Should I say it was empty?

As Ji-ho said, the dream-like time was over.

The music broadcast activities were over, and the celebrity-like activities like photo shoots would be gone soon.

We haven’t debuted yet.

When we go back to the dorm, we’ll be trainees again.

A long tunnel.

We ran through the dark tunnel and slipped into a side road, where we smelled the flowers in a beautiful garden and sang joyfully.

But the sweet time came to an end.

We had to go back to the tunnel and run towards the light.

But even if we pass through that tunnel, will we be able to meet that sweet time again?

They would all be worried like me, even if they didn’t say it.

‘Don’t worry.’

…I wanted to say that, but I’m not a god of the entertainment industry, and I can’t guarantee unconditional success.

So I said something else.

“You’ve worked hard, guys.”

We all looked at Yeouido, which was getting farther away beyond the car window.

“Until we come back, let’s work hard.”

We all nodded and smiled.

March 2014.

With the recording of Ha Seung-joo’s Music Cafe, New Black ended their activities for the project song Something.