Chapter 91
After receiving a call from Chairman Park Ki-joon, Kim Ji-ye, with an excited face, threw her cell phone on the bed, opened the door, and went out into the living room.
"Soo-hyun!!!"
Ji-ye saw an empty living room.
'Is he in the room?'
She ran to Soo-hyun's room and called, but there was no answer. She opened the door a little, thinking he was asleep, but Soo-hyun wasn't there. Ji-ye looked at the time. It was just before 9 p.m.
'Where did he go? To the supermarket to buy a snack?'
She was worried about Soo-hyun for a moment, but she couldn't hide her excitement at the news she had just heard and began to stomp her feet.
'The Emperor's Game! This is ridiculous! Our Soo-hyun is a composing genius! Ah, you should come quickly so I can give you this good news, but where have you gone?'
At the same time, in the playground in front of the house, Soo-hyun said, sitting on the swing that was creaking with rusted iron.
"How have you been?"
Jaehee nodded. Soo-hyun turned his head and looked to the side, seeing Jaehee sitting on the swing, looking at the ground, unable to meet his eyes.
"What have you been up to?"
"…Just practiced."
"Yeah, right. Practice is important. Ha, I realized that this is practicing like crazy. The months leading up to the competition were much harder than the past seven years."
Soo-hyun, who was laughing, pushed the swing a little harder. Questions lingered in Jaehee's eyes as she looked at Soo-hyun. She also knew that he had returned after winning the Beethoven Competition.
'But why have the last few months been so hard? Was this competition so difficult even for Soo-hyun, who is called a genius? It seems strange to see him like this. Junwoo, whom Jaehee didn't think was that good, came in second. Why are you joking around when you came back after winning without much difficulty?'
But Jaehee, who was deep in thought, didn't ask questions in detail. Soo-hyun, who was on the swing, said.
"What's this called?"
"…huh?"
"This thing I'm riding right now. It's hilarious. I don't even realize how much time has passed."
"…?"
'Are you asking about the swing? Wasn't there one where you lived?'
"Swing."
Soo-hyun, who was on the swing, kicked the ground and said.
"Is that your name? It sounds like a French name."
'That would be René, you idiot.'
"…What kind of place was the place where you lived?"
"Wasn't there a playground like this where there were no rides? My dad said you must have lived in the mountains."
Soo-hyun looked at the few stars in the sky and spoke calmly.
"It was a beautiful place. It was always warm and always smelled of fragrant grass."
"…She wasn't there?"
Soo-hyun smiled brightly.
"Yeah, there was no swing, and there's that red metal thing that kids come down from during the day. What's it called?"
"...slide."
"Yeah, there was nothing like that. And there were no stars in the sky."
Jaehee's eyebrows twitched.
'You said it was in the mountains. And since it was Switzerland, it would have been a place where stars fell from the night sky. I understand that there is no playground in the mountains, but this statement is hard to understand.'
Soo-hyun's words continued to reach Jaehee's ears.
"It's been seven years since I've seen the sky. It's always been hidden by trees."
'If you look at the sky in the jungle, you can see the sky between the trees, no matter how dense the trees are. Where the hell did you buy it?'
However, Jaehee was cautious about asking about Soo-hyun's past. Whenever this kind of conversation came up, Soo-hyun's expression was one of longing. Soo-hyun looked at the silent Jaehee and jumped off the swing and asked.
"Are you having a good time with your mom these days?"
Nod, nod.
"Are you okay?"
Nod, nod.
"That's good. You're not seeing your father yet?"
Nod, nod.
"Yeah, that's something we can't help."
Soo-hyun dusted off his clothes after swinging. It seemed like it was time to go home. Jaehee, who was feeling regretful, spoke in an impatient tone that was not typical of her.
"Junwoo said, you composed the song?"
Soo-hyun smiled as he watched Jaehee speak quickly, unlike his usual self, who hesitated before speaking and moved his mouth.
"Hey, are you good at talking now?"
"…." Jaehee's face turned bright red.
"That, that. Joo, Junwoo said you registered your music with the copyright association, so I was curious…"
Soo-hyun lost his balance and began to teeter as he sat on the seesaw next to the swing.
"Oh, what a surprise. What was this called?"
"…seesaw."
"Ah, yes. Is this fun? Have you tried it?"
Jaehee was about to say, "Of course. I don't even remember how many times I've ridden it. But I'm past the age where I can have fun riding the seesaw, so I don't ride it anymore," when she silently got up from the swing and walked over to the seesaw.
"You can't ride alone."
Jaehee said a few words and then went to sit on the seesaw chair on the other side. Naturally, the weight fell on Soo-hyun, who was heavier. Jaehee went up with her butt high in the air, rolling on the seesaw. But the seesaw tilted towards Soo-hyun and didn't come down. Soo-hyun looked at Jaehee with blank eyes. Jaehee said with a red face.
"Everyone, try to stand up with strength in your legs."
"Huh? Like this?"
As Soo-hyun stretched his legs, the seesaw tilted sharply due to Soo-hyun's immaturity. Jaehee landed hard on her butt, even though there was a tire underneath. Jaehee, who understood Soo-hyun's immaturity despite the pain, used the recoil to shift her center of gravity with the strength of her legs. Soo-hyun, who was looking at the seesaw with wide eyes, smiled.
"Hahaha, is this how you ride it? This is hilarious!"
Soo-hyun smiling innocently. The beautiful boy's smile made everyone lose their souls, but Jaehee's eyes looked a little sad.
'I feel bad for my friend who is only now able to get on the seesaw, even though he's turning fifteen in a month.'
Thump, thump. The sound of the seesaw got louder and louder, and as a result, my hips and waist began to feel tight, but as I watched Soo-hyun spinning the seesaw with excitement, I couldn't say anything to stop him. Finally, Soo-hyun, who had been on the seesaw for over ten minutes, made an effort to hold on and regained his balance on the seesaw before looking at Jaehee.
"Are we friends?"
"…huh."
"You shouldn't have any secrets from your friends, right?"
"…?"
Soo-hyun, who was staring at Jaehee, who was blinking her big eyes, opened her mouth with hesitation.
"That song I was talking about earlier is not my song."
Jaehee was startled.
'What are you talking about?! That's a crime!'
"Do you… know what that means?"
'Hmm? The professor said it was okay.'
"Professor? That can't be. Even a little kid knows it's a crime! You didn't tell him it wasn't your song, so he didn't know."
Jaehee said, holding on tightly to the safety bar of the seesaw.
"If the person who made that music sues you, you could be a criminal. You have to cancel it."
Soo-hyun chuckled.
'Is Mr. Beethoven going to come out and sue me?'
Soo-hyun waved his hand and said.
"That won't happen."
"How can you be so sure?"
"No, nothing like that. Don't worry."
Soo-hyun, who saw Jaehee's big eyes filled with worry, stretched his legs and raised his heels to make it easier for Jaehee to get off the seesaw.
"Get off."
"…."
Jaehee got off without a word. Soo-hyun, who made sure his friend got off safely, followed him and said.
"Thank you for worrying, but that will never happen."
Soo-hyun spoke confidently. But Jaehee's eyes looking at him were still full of worry.
"Thank you for riding the seesaw with me, Jaehee."
'I think I'm going home. Oh, I want to talk to you a little more. I haven't seen you since you were in Germany. I missed you so much. Can we stay a little longer?'
I wanted to hold on but I didn't know what to say. In Jaehee's complex eyes, Ji-ye saw Soo-hyun from a distance and ran towards him.
"Soo-hyun!!!"
Ji-ye ran towards me, waving her hands furiously. Her face reflected excitement. Soo-hyun waved his hand and smiled.
"Sister!"
Jaehee stared at Soo-hyun's profile.
'You see each other every day in the same house, so why are you so happy? Ha!, you never smiled at me like that.'
Jaehee, who was feeling sad for no reason, was about to step back when she heard Ji-ye run up to him, looking around, and speaking in a low voice. She was surprised and her eyes widened.
"Soo-hyun, I just got a call from Chairman Park Ki-joon. He said you have a song, right? A famous American broadcasting station wants to use it as an insert song. He said he needs to sign a contract and that he's coming tomorrow. Can you believe it?! It's an American drama!"
Ji-ye said she would speak in a low voice because Chairman Park Ki-jun asked her to do it secretly, but she was so excited that she couldn't control her voice. Jaehee quickly stepped forward and asked.
"…Sister."
"Oh, yes? You were with Jaehee."
"…If it's an American drama, what kind of drama is it?"
Ji-ye thought about it for a moment.
'You said it was a secret. But Jaehee is Soo-hyun's friend.'
"It's a secret."
"…."
"Just kidding, haha. I'll tell Soo-hyun, since he's my best friend. But don't tell him. Not even Junwoo."
Nod, nod. Ji-ye, with a proud face, grabbed Soo-hyun's shoulder and said.
"The Emperor's Game Season 9!"
Soo-hyun looked at her with a bewildered expression, as if asking what that was. In contrast, Jaehee's expression, which looked like she had seen a ghost, was amusing. Soo-hyun asked, looking at Jaehee's surprised face.
"Know?"
'Of course you know, you idiot! It's the most famous American drama! I haven't been able to see it yet because of the age rating, but I swore I would see it when I got older. It's one of the most famous dramas in the world!'
Jaehee was saying a thousand words in her mind. I suddenly remembered what Soo-hyun had just said about it not being his song and got scared.
'If this goes on, won't something really serious happen?'
Soo-hyun looked at Ji-ye blankly and asked.
"What good would it do if it were used as an insert song? And nothing else? Music that appears on TV shows and stuff like that. You're saying you're going to use it for that?"
Ji-ye, who knew that it was natural for Soo-hyun not to know, spoke with a surprised face.
"Yes, that's right. Even if it's not an original soundtrack, but an insert song, there are so many royalties. And if it becomes famous, it will be used in other programs, and the royalties will only grow. Our Soo-hyun is already making a ton of money! I'm so proud of my older sister!"
Ji-ye patted his head with a proud expression. Now, Soo-hyun was taller than him, but he still seemed like a child.
"So, you're going to make money?"
"Yes! A lot! And you'll get honor too."
"Can I refuse?"
"…huh?"
"I asked if I could refuse."
"Oh, of course you can if you refuse… but why? Opportunities like this don't come often, Soo-hyun."
Soo-hyun walked towards his house, putting his hands in his sweater pockets.
"Then please refuse, sister."
"Hey, wait a minute, Soo-hyun! Soo-hyun!"
Ji-ye ran and grabbed Soo-hyun's arm, dragging him away. Ji-ye, who could no longer defeat Soo-hyun with her own strength, was dragged away by grabbing onto his arm.
"Wait a minute! Let me hear the story a little more and then I'll decide."
Soo-hyun stopped, as if he thought Ji-ye might get hurt if he kept dragging her, and then looked at Jaehee, who was still standing there, before speaking.
"I don't want to make money with that song."
This time, unlike before, Ji-ye's expression was one of incomprehension, while Jaehee's expression was one of relief.