47 – Festivities (4) 47.
"Why?"
At my question, Han Goyo didn't answer. She just looked at me.
I frowned.
Not liking the mood of the song—I could understand. If it didn't suit her taste, of course she wouldn't like it.
But saying she didn't like Suyeon? That, I couldn't understand.
"What is it about Suyeon that you don't like?"
I wasn't trying to argue. I genuinely wanted to know.
Han Goyo still just stared at me, not saying a single word.
I drank my coffee. Time passed.
The silence lingered, different from before—this time, it felt awkward.
How long did it last?
Finally, Han Goyo opened her mouth.
"It's unfair."
"Unfair?"
"She has everything, and yet she still tries to take even what I have. It's unfair."
"??"
I had no idea what she meant.
Suyeon has everything?
…Well, I guess to someone like Han Goyo—who doesn't know Suyeon's previous life—maybe it could look that way. She's never said it, but it's obvious she carries some kind of burden. You can tell from the way she talks sometimes.
So to Goyo, Suyeon might seem fortunate, even privileged.
Abundance and poverty are always relative. Fine. That part I could accept.
But the second part…
Suyeon trying to take something from her?
"What is she taking?"
"You should know."
After saying that, Han Goyo stood up. She looked at me and said,
"See you on stage."
Then she walked out of the café.
I watched her back as she left.
You should know.
She wouldn't say that without a reason.
I finished the rest of my coffee.
What did she see… in Suyeon's rehearsal?
I remembered how she looked right before leaving the café—eyes on the verge of tears, something I had never seen from her before.
Somehow, the coffee in my mouth suddenly tasted unbearably bitter.
§ § §
"I wish the stage would start already!"
4:20 PM.
After arriving at Seolwon Arts and finishing her preparations, Yoon Suyeon spoke to her brother, Yoon Hajun.
He nodded.
"Yeah."
There were forty minutes left until the performances started. Hajun looked Suyeon over to make sure nothing was missing.
She was dressed extremely comfortably. A hoodie two or three sizes too big. Relaxed shorts you'd only wear at home. Even her sneakers had that slightly worn-in, vintage look.
"Are you really okay performing in that outfit?"
"Yeah. I told you—it's a relaxed concept overall."
"But I kind of want to do heavier makeup…"
"This is enough."
At Hajun's reply, Suyeon pouted.
Honestly, it was her first time on stage—she wanted to look as pretty as possible. But she also knew the light makeup matched the concept perfectly, so she didn't complain.
The song she'd sing, the stage she'd stand on—
All of it was born from Hajun's hands.
And so, Suyeon trusted her brother.
"Who's performing first?"
"Blue Aka. You remember Won Seongmin sunbae and Kim Taeyoung from last time."
"Oh, your friend?"
"Yeah."
Hajun nodded.
The performance order was:
Guest Performers → Practical Music Department Representative → First Years → Second Years → Third Years → Traditional Music Department Representative.
Since the Practical Music rep took the opening, the Traditional Music rep got the ending. Fair enough.
Hajun's stage was ninth among the first-years—last among the Practical Music first-years.
The order for the first-years was:
1st — Practical Music Rep: Han Goyo2nd — Traditional Music Rep3rd — Kang Seonghun…9th — Hajun and Suyeon
"When the eighth performer goes up, we head to the waiting room."
"So we can watch everything until then!"
"Yeah."
"We'll even get to see the stages we missed at rehearsal!"
Suyeon said excitedly. Hajun nodded.
During rehearsal, Suyeon's slot had been swapped due to her school schedule, so she didn't get to see the others.
"Let's go grab seats."
"Okay."
They headed to the audience area.
The very front rows were reserved for invited guests—meaning talent agency reps. Everything else was first-come, first-served. There were only so many chairs. If you didn't get one, you'd have to stand or sit on the ground.
Luckily, arriving early, they got pretty good seats.
"Hwayangyeonhwa is second?"
"No, third. Second is the Traditional Music side."
There were five guest performances. Blue Aka first, Hwayangyeonhwa last.
As they waited, Hajun stretched.
Sitting beside him, Suyeon couldn't calm her pounding heart. It felt like her chest would burst.
That rehearsal stage from dawn… There hadn't even been a real audience—just staff preparing for the show. And yet, it had shocked her to the core.
People were listening to her sing. A huge stage existed just for her.
It was… intoxicating.
She wanted to get on stage again—right now.
She watched the stage impatiently, feet tapping nonstop.
"Don't be too nervous."
Hajun said, worried—probably thinking her bouncing legs were from anxiety.
But Suyeon shook her head vigorously.
"Nope. Not nervous at all."
She wasn't lying. She wasn't nervous. If anything, her heart was bursting with excitement.
She wanted to perform. Right. Now.
It was the only thing in her head.
And then—it began.
The stage lights turned on. The now-familiar host—comedian Lee Hwayul—walked on stage.
Why does he keep showing up at our school festival? Did we sign an exclusive contract with him? Well, he is good at hosting…
As Hajun let his mind wander with pointless thoughts, the MC skillfully greeted everyone and acknowledged the talent agency representatives who had come to watch.
After briefly explaining the order of performances—
The first team stepped onto the stage.
At the sound of the name "Blue Aka," the crowd erupted in murmurs. Some people recognized the name. Some didn't.
It made sense. Blue Aka was more popular overseas than in Korea. Not knowing them wasn't strange.
But after today's performance—no one would forget that name.
Because Blue Aka's live performances had explosive power.
In the center of the stage, in the vocalist's spot, Kim Taeyoung let out a small breath.
This was it. The real thing.
Remembering all the effort he had put in up to now… he felt like he might cry. God, it had been so damn hard. He wanted to enjoy the festival too.
But one mistake in rehearsal—and they wouldn't let him relax at all.
Fine. All the frustration and resentment—he would pour it into this stage.
Taeyoung looked around. Won Seongmin on guitar nodded to the members. The others nodded back. They were ready.
"Let's go."
Won Seongmin murmured toward Taeyoung.
Taeyoung looked forward—then nodded.
In front of him were countless spectators. The front row was full of agency reps, right?
Good. Watch closely.
I'm not someone who'll be satisfied with just this level of stage.
The drums kicked in behind him—fast, but heavy. The beat thumped through the air.
Taeyoung nodded in rhythm. The bass followed. A ridiculously funky groove. His nodding grew more intense.
When Won Seongmin's guitar layered on top—Taeyoung didn't just nod anymore. His whole body moved with the rhythm.
Annoying, strict, and harsh as they were—Blue Aka's skill was the real deal.
Especially Won Seongmin's guitar. The more you listened, the more it amazed you.
While admiring it, Taeyoung waited for just the right moment to start singing.
When the guitar withdrew—when the drums surged—
—There's nothing that never changes!
He came in perfectly.
The crowd gasped. Perfect timing.
Taeyoung melted into Blue Aka. No—
It wasn't that he melted into them. He ran ahead, and the band followed his lead.
Feeling them match his pace, he got excited and started running across the stage.
—Even as we age, we don't change!
Taeyoung belted out the lyrics as he ran.
Blue Aka's stage was high-energy punk rock. A stage so fun, it made your body move on instinct. Taeyoung's favorite kind of stage.
—They say living recklessly is hard…
Watching that, Hajun nodded.
As expected of Blue Aka. As expected of Kim Taeyoung.
This was far beyond what he expected.
This… was going to be a problem.
Could Suyeon really become the star of the festival? That worry grew.
And on top of that—Han Goyo's words kept echoing in his mind. That Suyeon was trying to take something from her.
His thoughts tangled together.
"Taeyoung oppa sings so well."
Suyeon murmured beside him.
Hajun nodded.
"He's someone who really knows how to ride the atmosphere."
It wasn't an insult. It was praise.
Taeyoung was a genius, but in a different way from Han Goyo.
Han Goyo had an insanely high average. Her low moments were low, but her highs… well, who knew? Right now might be her high.
But her performances were always above average, no matter the genre.
Taeyoung was different. His highs were sky-high. His lows were bottomless.
If he enjoyed the stage, he would explode beyond imagination. If he didn't… he would crash spectacularly.
That was why Taeyoung's stages were always fun.
Because he only chose the kind of stages he enjoyed.
—Because boring things aren't fun!
Soon, Taeyoung's stage ended. A short three minutes. But the sweat pouring down his face showed just how hard he had gone.
Turning around, he glanced at the Blue Aka members. He had gone all out, but… did he make any mistakes?
He started to worry.
The members smiled and nodded at him. They didn't say anything, but it was enough.
After finishing, Taeyoung stepped down from the stage. He had to make way for the second performers.
The second stage belonged to the Traditional Music side. Contrary to the stereotype that traditional music is boring, their stage was hype. They mixed hip-hop and traditional instruments in just the right way—it was enough to get the audience fired up.
Next, the third stage—a graduate of the Practical Music Department. A currently active male ballad singer. With a sweet ballad, he cooled down the overheated atmosphere.
Fourth—another Traditional Music stage. This one matched people's expectations of traditional music—calm, emotional, deeply moving instrumentals.
Finally, the fifth guest stage—Hwayangyeonhwa.
At their appearance, Suyeon screamed and flailed in excitement. On stage, hearing her voice, Jin Sohyang and the members waved at her.
Suyeon jumped up and down, slapping Hajun's arm.
"Oppa! Oppa! They saw me! They waved at ME!"
For a moment, Hajun feared she might ascend to Valhalla. He sighed.
She was a sweet sister… except when it came to Hwayangyeonhwa. Then she completely broke.
Was she malfunctioning?
And didn't she say just recently that Jin Sohyang was "not as great as she thought"?
Seriously, girls' hearts make no sense.
As he thought that, the stage began.
Hwayangyeonhwa's performance was a new arrangement of "Rough." It was based on Hajun's own arrangement, but reworked by Kwon Suyoung.
Compared to his version, this one was much milder.
His version of "Rough" was obsession and madness.
This one? Mild jealousy.
"If you look at another girl, I'll pinch your eyelids!"
That level.
But that didn't mean the stage was worse.
Five members moving like one body, singing and dancing—it was breathtaking. Especially the main vocalist and leader, Harin—her vocals were outstanding.
And the highlight part…
It made Hajun sigh.
"That's cheating."
He muttered quietly.
Beautiful, cool idol girls—lying on the stage, one hand around their own necks, the other holding a red ribbon, writhing in sync—
The crowd went wild.
Ah… my blood pressure.
Why are idols working this hard… at a high school festival?!
Don't bring your professional pride here! Just do your normal performance!
Why make a special arrangement just for this?!
Hajun hated Jin Sohyang more today than yesterday.
Whether she knew it or not, after finishing the stage successfully, she smiled brightly and waved at him.
And with that, the guest performances ended.
But the stage was far from over.
In fact—this was where it really began.
The talent agency staff sat up straight. Their eyes locked onto the stage.
The first-year stages.
And leading them—Han Goyo.
She was already famous among agencies. The student who delivered a dominating stage at the Practical Music Concert. And currently… free. No contracts. Of course they would drool.
Thanks to Hwayangyeonhwa's stage, the crowd was hyped to the max.
And into that heat—Han Goyo stepped onto the stage.
Seeing her, Hajun frowned.
Her outfit was different from the one she wore at the Freshman Concert. Back then, she wore a calm white dress. Now… a dress of black and red intertwined.
With her usual expressionless face and the black-red dress, she looked even darker.
And the sun was setting. The light was fading.
The stage lights turned off. Han Goyo blended into the darkness—her form disappearing.
Then—
the melody started.
The chilling sound of a waterphone. A violin crying over it. The sound of rain, perfectly matched.
As the rain faded—
a white spotlight fell onto Han Goyo standing on stage.
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