Do kids these days sing songs like this?
A blues, and even a sentimental love song at that. It's a genre I've never sung in my life.
'A student should be studying. Already singing love songs. Do you even know what love is?'
I don't like the genre.
I wouldn't sing it even if my girlfriend asked me to.
Do I really have to go this far?
But I decided to sing for this kid who might become the next Halo.
'This is the first and last time.'
Kang Youngmin exclaimed with a 'Huh!'
Saying he'd finish the recording in one take seemed arrogant, yet strangely fitting.
'Unbelievable.'
I don't expect him to finish it in one go, but I'm curious to see how well he sings.
I'm also curious about him scribbling in his notebook as if he's suddenly inspired. If he's modifying the song, the accompaniment track will be useless.
The student naturally picks up the acoustic guitar.
"Let's see what you've got."
It's a place that many aspiring musicians and decent song YouTubers have passed through, even if there aren't any celebrities.
Kang Youngmin, who gave up on music early after realizing his limitations, has been praised for his good ear many times.
Kang Youngmin crossed his arms and decided to wait and see.
Even if he sings moderately well, his tone might make it sound decent.
But he has to take responsibility for the confidence he showed.
He's raised expectations quite a bit.
Soon, a gentle melody began, and a voice followed.
[All Night]
Surprisingly, Kang Youngmin's hand slipped on the very first note.
[I have something to say]
His upper body leaned forward.
[Every moment Just listen as it flows]
"Uh, uh…"
Kang Youngmin's eyes widened, unaware that he had made a strange exclamation.
[It might seem strange]
It's definitely just an ordinary student in the recording studio, but the song is not ordinary.
[With trembling steps,
I'm getting one step closer to you]
His mind froze.
[If no matter what I say,
You don't leave,
If you greet me with the brightest smile,
So that I'm not afraid of this night]
"Good."
One impression is enough.
There was no need to add more adjectives.
[The moment we've been waiting for
the most Will come]
The student looked back at him and smiled while singing the chorus.
As if asking, 'Was it good?'
It was unlike someone singing a ballad, but his relaxed demeanor suited him well.
After the interlude, the melody of the second verse became even more diverse. If the first part was simple, the next part sounded more desperate. It was like a dramatic narrative with a beginning, development, turn, and conclusion, but it wasn't complex or cluttered.
Kang Youngmin listened intently to the sound.
He should have stopped and recorded again, but he couldn't bring himself to stop.
"How can I stop this? I'm not deaf."
The recording must have been good. He'll check it after this lingering feeling fades. For now, he wanted to savor every moment like the lyrics said.
Kang Youngmin rested his chin on his hand and closed his eyes.
It was a song he wanted to add to his playlist and listen to whenever he thought of it.
#
"Hmm."
There are still many disappointing parts.
It's not just about the genre.
Since he didn't get permission from the actual composer, he had to compromise, leaving quite a few regrets.
If he touched it more, it would become a completely different song.
The musical guys he knows well are generally very proud of their music. How many of them would never compromise, even with the persuasion, coercion, or threats of producers or agency presidents?
There was even a madman who punched a producer for touching his song without permission. He knows that person very well.
'After that, no one touched my stuff.'
Anyway, Halo respected this kid's music and only made minimal modifications. He wouldn't touch it any further without this kid's permission.
"How was it? Are you satisfied?"
Of course, there's no answer.
Because Halo is controlling this body right now.
He stretched once and came out of the recording studio.
Thinking that the recording must have been good, he wanted to listen to it once.
"Was the recording good-"
"Student! What is that song!"
He couldn't finish his sentence.
Kang Youngmin grabbed Halo's shoulders with an excited face. He was praising him with a fuss.
It's a new feeling for Halo.
Of course, praise and compliments are always nice to hear,
But being grabbed by a scruffy middle-aged man doesn't feel so good.
Halo smiled and tried to shake him off naturally.
If only this body had the slightest bit of strength.
He couldn't shake off Kang Youngmin. His thin, white arms were scrawny and had no muscle. Now that he looked, his legs were shaking, and his head was a little dizzy.
A typical lack of physical strength.
To think he was going to be a singer with this body. It was an unexpected problem.
"Whose song is it? I've never heard it before. Is it a singer I know?"
What is this guy talking about again?
"It's my song."
"What?"
"Didn't you see it earlier? The sketch."
"No, I saw it, but is that song yours?"
He reacted as if he couldn't believe it.
His mouth was gaping, and I didn't know what he was trying to say.
Is he doubting me? Or,
"Did you really compose it from beginning to end? Without any professional help?"
"I need to get professional help from now on."
"Who? Me?"
Halo nodded, and Kang Youngmin's eyes widened.
"That's right! I need to work on it from now on."
Mixing and correction… Actually, there's not much to do. It's already complete as it is.
Kang Youngmin still couldn't believe it. In the end, he made it all by himself.
How can he make a song like this? Is he a genius?
If it weren't for his relaxed and skilled attitude, I would have doubted him.
"Student!"
Kang Youngmin shouted again, looking away from the computer. He didn't realize he was so excited.
"Are you going to upload this to YouTube?"
"Huh?"
"Everyone does it these days. Aren't you going to upload it to YouTube? Or is it for college applications?"
"…"
He's acting like it's obvious.
Halo calmly thought about what YouTube was. Judging by the nuance, it seemed to mean a radio station.
"Don't they not accept just anyone there?"
Radio stations wouldn't accept just any song. Of course, he's not just anyone. Well, it would be different if they didn't have a good eye.
"Not accept?"
Kang Youngmin tilted his head.
"Anyone can upload to YouTube."
"Anyone?"
"Well, if you have an account?"
What's an account again?
Is he talking about a bank account or a citizen ID?
As he stood there blankly, Kang Youngmin spoke again.
"Give me your phone. I'll show you."
I don't usually do this kind of service.
It's amazing that there's still a kid who doesn't know about YouTube, and Kang Youngmin decided to teach him as a special favor because it was a song he wanted to listen to again.
"My phone?"
"Did you put it in your bag?"
Halo nodded absentmindedly.
Kang Youngmin opened the cabinet for him.
Halo opened his bag. Math textbooks, TOEFL [Test of English as a Foreign Language] materials, notebooks, and countless ballpoint pens and pencils. I don't know if this is the bag of an aspiring singer or a model student. I doubted if it was really his.
"There's a front pocket too."
At Kang Youngmin's words, Halo found the front pocket.
When he opened it, a smartphone and a card fell to the floor with a thud.
"There it is."
Halo picked up the plastic card, and Kang Youngmin took the machine. Holding the card, Halo looked at the phone with Kang Youngmin.
"What, why isn't YouTube there?"
Muttering to himself, Kang Youngmin pressed something.
"Ah, you can't find it because you put it in a folder. Why did you hide it like this?"
Soon, his expression became cheerful.
Halo stared blankly, watching Kang Youngmin's actions.
Showing him clearly, he pointed to the '+' button.
"The PC might be a little different. But it'll be similar. If you press this, you can upload videos."
"…Videos."
"Videos or whatever. If you upload them and a lot of people watch them, you can also generate revenue. Well, you probably know that better than me."
You can make money?
Halo suppressed his surprised expression and said.
What principle do you use to upload this and what principle do you use to make money?
What is this?
Suddenly, it felt like he had fallen into another world.
"The recording went well. I'll send it to you by email by tomorrow."
"Yes."
"Looking at it roughly, the video was also filmed well. We're not video experts, so we only have one camera, but your action was so good."
"Yes."
Halo let Kang Youngmin's words flow by. Half of his mind was on the 'YouTube' that Kang Youngmin had returned.
#
'Oops.'
Halo raised his head sharply as he came down the stairs.
He packed his things well, but he wasn't thinking about what he should be doing. He was distracted by 'YouTube'.
If his manager had seen him, he might have sighed deeply.
"Where do I go now?"
Halo came out of the building and slowly opened his mouth.
A forest of skyscrapers he had never seen before unfolded before him.
At first glance, it looks like New York, but it's not.
The signs are written in a language other than English, and most of the people passing by are also Asian.
A bustling city.
Halo foolishly admired it, but soon came to his senses. He should have thought about where he was and who he was before coming out.
His regret didn't last long.
Halo looked around and then plopped down on the floor. A clean street, with a glass door behind him. As he sat down with his guitar, people who showed interest for a moment soon passed by.
Halo took out the card from his pocket.
The card, which looked like an ID, had a photo, name, date of birth, and finally the school name written on it. No matter how hard he looked, he couldn't find the home address.
Seonyeon Private Middle School, 3rd Grade, Class 1
If he's in 9th grade, he's older than I thought.
"Fourteen, fifteen years old? Born on April 1, 2016, Noh Haeil. Wait, this?"
Halo, who had been reading from the bottom up, became serious when he saw the English name.
Haeil Roh
It wasn't just a similar pronunciation to be a coincidence. The sound of his heart seemed to be getting louder and louder. Halo took a deep breath.
"Let's sort things out."
First of all, this is not his body.
Even if he had a brain transplant, he wouldn't have woken up in a recording studio, so let's discard the science fiction fantasies.
He's closer to stealing someone else's body like Satan.
'Fuck. How is this different from SF [Science Fiction]?'
Anyway.
He came into someone else's body like that.
A fourteen-year-old minor. An Asian.
He stole the body of a kid who came to record in the recording studio, and when he came out, it was a foreign country full of new things.
He doesn't know where this kid went, and there are no exorcists in sight. He doesn't know what to do now, and he's sitting on the street like a runaway teenager from the old days.
He just checked his ID and found out that his name is Halo.
'Could it be that I haven't fully woken up yet?
Or am I having a mental breakdown?
A dream?
Halo looked down at his white fist and hit his thigh.
"!"
It hurts, so it's definitely real.
'What the hell?'
Confusion came.
Halo, who was an atheist, wondered if there really was a heaven and hell, and a god in the world.
He wondered if he was going to have a mental breakdown like this,
"What, Noh Haeil?"
A group of people stopped in front of him,
"What are you doing here? Like a homeless person."
Someone walked forward.