Editing the video took a whole day. In that one day, a series of big incidents happened.

“…Wait, they’re helping us? Like this?”

I couldn’t help but be amazed as I read the online articles.

[Uncovering the Mastermind Behind Planned Celebrity Rumors.]

[What Would Have Happened to Hee-yeon Lee With No Livestream?]

[Informant’s Manipulated Information Mysteriously Disappears After Investigation.]

[Blue Sherbet Member Yoon-jung Hwang Saves Hee-yeon Lee with Stunning Dance Video.]

[Adorable Girl Group to Watch This Year! Blue Sherbet.]

[Hee-yeon Lee’s Comeback Imminent! Working Hard on a New Project!]

How far will his support go, I wonder.

“Thanks, Director Park.”

***

Yesterday, we filmed and had a great time chatting with the team before parting ways. If it turned out well, we would definitely do more shoots like this.

Coming back to today, Yoon-jung prepared for an livestream after taking a few days off.

“They said the video is going up at ten.”

“Okay! See you later!”

I got in the minivan with Hee-yeon and started our car ride to meet LOAN and Hae-yeol to work on the next song.

“You said they already finished the song, right?” Hee-yeon asked.

“Yes. He asked us to come since the draft was finished already. They’ll probably fine-tune it while you’re singing it.”

“Like last time?”

“Yep. It’ll probably be that way since LOAN is there with him.”

I wondered what a song co-composed by Hae-yeol and LOAN would sound like. I was looking forward to it even more since this kind of collaboration didn’t happen before my regression.

Soon enough, we arrived at Hae-yeol’s office, and they welcomed us from the sofa in front of the studio.

“Ah, you’re here. I thought my neck would fall off waiting for you,” Hae-yeol sighed deeply.

LOAN scratched the back of his head, looking a bit awkward. From their expressions, it didn’t seem like their work was going smoothly.

“Wasn’t the draft supposed to be done?”

“Well, it’s done… but we almost died making it,” said Hae-yeol.

“…I’m sorry,” LOAN murmured in a small voice.

“No need to apologize. We’re just trying to impress President Kang by working hard. Haha.”

 “What happened?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Well, how should I put it?” Hae-yeol started, “He and I have very different styles of composing. He insisted that Hee-yeon should be here, but I wanted to at least draft something first. We could make up on the spot like we showed in the broadcast, but that’s not the best way of doing it.”

True, after years of composing, everyone developed their own style. I felt like I could understand the gap between the two.

“So, I tried to create a draft by myself, but Mr. LOAN kept saying he didn’t like it. We kept revising, discarding, and rewriting, and finally came up with this. It was exhausting. Haha.”

“T-This one has a good feel. I didn’t mean the others were bad! Really!” LOAN said.

“Haha, that’s a relief. But… I’m not sure if President Kang will like it. It’s quite different from the previous songs…”

I left the decision for the concept entirely up to them because I wanted to let these two talented people create freely without restrictions. It felt like a better choice than losing a masterpiece just because of some arbitrary limitations.

“What kind of song is it?”

“Hmm… I think it would be better if you listened to it first before discussing anything.”

With nothing else to say, we moved to the studio. Hee-yeon seemed to be looking forward to this, too. Hae-yeol played the music without a word, and I understood why he sounded hesitant about the draft from the loud music blared from the speakers.

“Rock?!” I exclaimed.

“Yes. Somehow, it ended up sounding like a mix of Imagine Dragons and Coldplay.”

I was stunned. Hee-yeon doing rock? Before turning back time, I had never heard… No, wait, I had.

‘It was Coldplay’s Hymn For The Weekend, wasn’t it?’

Hee-yeon sang this song in a variety show, where she traveled around the world to busk. I closed my eyes and recalled a memory from the show.

It was dusk in Venice, Italy. There she was, singing under the famous Rialto Bridge. Italian citizens sat sipping their beer at their streetlit tables. Others gathered at the bridge rails. 

When Hee-yeon began singing, the bustling atmosphere quieted, and everyone listened to her sing. 

The song she sang was ‘Hymn For The Weekend.’

A big round of applause followed her performance, and the clip from the show exceeded 40 million views. It became the show’s biggest hit.

“It’s a bit much, right?” Hae-yeol asked and shrugged. He seemed to think I was troubled because my eyes were closed.

“President Kang. I think it does feel right. Honestly. But we’re not saying we’re going with rock, so don’t worry too much. We’re just matching the feel. When Hee-yeon sings, we can adjust the genre to K-pop.”

I looked at Hee-yeon and saw her eyes sparkle with interest. 

“Can we build this up as it is?” I asked.

Everyone’s eyes widened with shock, as if they had just heard something outrageous.

“Let’s try going with this. We do need to adjust it for Hee-yeon, but we don’t have to change it to K-pop.”

“But, I mean… President Kang, did you say you wanted to go with rock?”

“Yes, will there be a problem?”

Hae-yeol pondered for a moment before speaking in a serious voice.

“Yes, it can absolutely be a problem.”

“Because it’s rock?”

“Yes.”

He was talking about expertise. You could say that the problem was with the genre itself. It was an issue that rock couldn’t escape, like hip-hop.

It could have been a different story if Hee-yeon had always done rock, but she debuted in an idol group before going solo as a pop singer. Would it make sense for her to switch to rock now? When she was only starting to get noticed?

If this left a bad impression, people wouldn’t like the song even before listening to it. However, there was a way around this. We had to address the root of the issue: Expertise.

“There won’t be a problem if we do it well. If we make it so well that there’s no room for criticism, we’ll be fine. And with Hae-yeol Yoo involved in the composition, we’ll have a strong first line of defense.”

The song would be the equivalent of a poisoned chalice even if the song was good, but if the song was ‘super’ good, the ‘poison’ would just disappear.

It was like if a famous tennis player suddenly tried soccer. People would be critical, saying that the player was looking down on soccer. However, if they scored a hat trick during a match, everyone would go wild instead. Our situation was the same.

(T/N: A hat trick in a soccer game occurs when a player scores three goals in one game.)

“So, make it… very good…”

“Ugh…”

“Just sing it… exceptionally well?”

The three stiffened at my words, and I heard someone gulp audibly.

“Um… well…” Hae-yeol was at a loss for words.

I casually continued.

“Let’s make it first and see how it turns out. If it doesn’t work, we can change it. Hee-yeon, you know how to sing rock songs from Imagine Dragons or Coldplay, right?”

“Yes, I think so.”

“Why don’t you give it a try?”

“…Okay.”

We started working, and within three hours, everyone was exhausted. 

“President Kang, I think we need more time. Let’s stop here for today,” he struggled to say, looking drained.

“Errgh… This isn’t it. What’s missing? I feel like I almost have it, but why?!” LOAN, who specialized in idol and pop music, was clearly struggling with rock.

He was the same, both now and before my regression. Trying to seriously do rock resulted in him holding his head in frustration. Still, I decided to trust his instincts once again. Hae-yeol was with him, and more importantly… I had a hunch.

If it didn’t work, we could scrap it.

‘Anyway, it doesn’t look like this will be done in just one or two days.’

Hee-yeon and I left the studio and headed back to our lodging.

***

[Huh? There’s a streamer who took several days off without any notice and hasn’t given any explanation? Blam!]

[A streamer pretending not to hear us no matter how much we ask? Let’s see who wins, you or us.]

Following the donation messages, Yoon-jung started her stream without saying a word about her recent break. Yoon-jung had no intention of saying anything until the video was uploaded at 10 o’clock, like Hyuk asked her to.

–  She’s really stubborn, isn’t she?

–  So cold-hearted.

–  Come on, guys take it easy. She’s a celebrity. She was probably busy.

–  Stop defending her. This is totally about a relationship

–  she’s not gonna give an explanation?

As Yoon-jung kept silent, the viewers grew increasingly upset. Initially, they had asked playfully, but her silence made the atmosphere become tense.

Throughout the game, Yoon-jung’s expression was stiff. Just as she was about to lose her temper, Hee-yeon returned to the dorm.

“Yoon-jung, I’m hung—”

Hee-yeon burst through the door, saw Yoon-jung streaming, and quickly shut her mouth.

–  Whose voice is that? Reveal yourself!

–  Is that Hee-yeon? Is it really her?

–  Hee-yeon, please get her to talk ☹ The suspense is killing us

“Hee-yeon, I’m hungry. Should we eat?”

“You’re in the middle of streaming, though. Is that okay?”

“It’s fine. I don’t mind.”

The chat exploded in a negative way. Not only was she not giving an explanation, but she also said it was fine to leave to eat, making viewers even angrier.

It was the worst atmosphere in Yoon-jung’s streaming history. However, Hee-yeon was oblivious to this since she could not see the chat.

Hee-yeon nodded and said, “There’s no food right now, so I’ll go buy something.”

“Thanks.”

Hee-yeon left, and Yoon-jung continued to focus on the game, ignoring the chat entirely.

***

Do-jin Park and Journalist Choi started their plan today. Do-jin’s handsomely chiseled face wrinkled in anxiety.

“Damn it, did we just waste time today?”

They had no idea when Hee-yeon, who had just entered the dorm, would come out again. Without the President there, they had no choice but to wait for her to come out alone.

“Just wait a bit longer. If not today, then tomorrow. If not tomorrow, the day after. What’s the rush? We already got a 1 million won advance.”

“Now that I think about it, it’s too little! Once the job’s done, we get another 1 million won. That makes 3 million won in total. How does that make sense? Who knows when we’ll finish?”

“Then just get some money and get lost. You know you can’t call it quits once the job starts, right?”

“…Damn, I hate when you have a point.”

It was a large sum for a simple task, which included a confidentiality fee. He dreamed big of making a fortune with the 3 million won at a casino. 

To him, it wasn’t just 3 million won. It was 30 million won or more. Who cared what happened in the future? At least, that was what Do-jin thought. 

So, they waited like that for who knows how long.

“She’s out!”

Not long after, they saw Hee-yeon leaving, wearing a hat pulled down low.

“I’ll follow her. Make sure you stay close.”

“Got it. Just do your job right!”

“Don’t worry about that.”

***

While Hee-yeon headed to the convenience store, tension grew to its peak in the survival game with the last ten players aiming for each other.

Yoon-jung’s phone rang. She debated whether to abandon the game but chose to keep playing and answered on speaker.

“Hi, Hee-yeon.”

– Yoon-jung, can you talk?

“Yes, it’s fine. What’s up?”

– I’m at the convenience store, and I really want some frozen dumplings.

“Get them. I like frozen dumplings too.”

– But I also want ramen and tteokbokki.

“Buy everything.” Yoon-jung responded absentmindedly, focused on the game, and the viewers were all ears to the unexpected call.

–  Lol, what’s up with their conversation?

–  They’re in a girl group. Must be worried about their weight lol.

–  Hee-yeon is cute when she’s whining.

Yoon-jung shot – bang! – and killed a player, then hid again.

– How are we going to eat all that? We’ll gain weight.

“You could gain a bit more.”

– Really? Hmm, maybe I will. I’ve been exhausted from working with the composers today.

The chat exploded from Hee-yeon’s comment hinting at a comeback. Meanwhile, Yoon-jung was too focused on the game to notice, and Hee-yeon didn’t realize their conversation was being livestreamed.

“Yes, eat it all.”

– Okay. Just for today… Oh, excuse me. Thank you. Yes.

A man’s voice suddenly cut in.

The man was saying things like, “You’re Hee- yeon, right? I really enjoy your music. I’m a huge fan.”

–  Show us Hee-yeon too!

–  mukbang collab, let’s gooo!

–  guys, don’t forget we still need an explanation!

Viewers heard everything from the beeping of the cash register, the sound of leaving the convenience store, to the conversation between Hee-yeon and her fan. Then, Yoon-jung finished the game in first place.

“Phew!

– Oh, a photo? Sure, I can take one for you.

“Hee-yeon.”

– Thank you!

“Hee-yeon.”

– ….

“She must have forgotten she was on the phone.”

There was no response, just the sound of footsteps, so Yoon-jung casually hung up.

It was now 9:55.

As Hee-yeon returned to the dorm, the clock read 10 o’clock. Yoon-jung played the video without a word.

The title of the video: [Led Zeppelin – Whole Lotta Love (Ah-young & Hwang Yoon-jung Choreography)]

Viewers went crazy.

—

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