Chapter 39. The reveal (2)
"Are you joking with me? You are really kidding, right?"
Lee Hyun asked with shock written all over his face. He wished that what Harin was saying was just a joke, but it didn't look like it.
Her expression was saying that she was serious.
"I'm not joking. I really murd-"
"Don't say that word!"
Lee Hyun swallowed his saliva before speaking again.
"Talk without speaking that word. There are a lot of people here."
He glanced around to notice the people happily chatting while drinking their coffee.
They were in a public place. So, Lee Hyun was even whispering.
"So, well, I went to the juvenile centre. As I was underage and it was the case of unintentional killing, I do not have to go to the prison but…"
A puzzle started being solved in Lee Hyun's mind when he heard those words. The answer to all his questions was the same.
Why didn't Harin contracted with another agency? Why was she singing in a place like Tarot bar? Why was she so angry when he asked her to become a singer?
And why she refused his offer…
'Did she really commit a murder?'
Lee Hyun thought about it seriously. A murder is the most severe of crimes and Harin didn't look like the type to do something like that.
Moreover, she said it was unintentional killing.
For some reason, Lee Hyun felt that there was more to it than what it seems. He decided to trust his instincts this time.
"Harin, honestly tell me, did you actually commit it? You don't look like the type to do that, even unintentionally."
Harin was surprised hearing that.
She didn't think that Lee Hyun would ask that, but suddenly, her expression hardened.
"Does it matter if I have really committed it or not? You probably have already changed your mind regarding me, right?"
Lee Hyun didn't answer her immediately. He thought about it carefully.
'A celebrity with a criminal record…'
Someone with a criminal record can't become a celebrity. It was something everyone knows as society would not accept it.
Even if he decided to hide the fact that Harin has a criminal record, one day the truth will eventually come out.
It was just too risky.
But…
'What will happen to her?'
Lee Hyun stared at Harin who had her head lowered like she was waiting to hear a bad news.
He can see that Harin had come to him with a lot of courage and hope. It was not like she didn't know what Lee Hyun's answer would be after he heard about her record.
But she has still hoped and came here.
'What should I do?'
It was a hard decision and Lee Hyun didn't know what the right answer would be, but…
'She deserves a chance.'
Life had given him a chance to correct his past mistakes. So, why can't he give Harin a chance to fulfil her dream?
"Harin, I'm not changing my mind regarding you."
He opened his mouth after a while.
"Huh?? What did you just say?"
Harin looked at Lee Hyun with a strange gaze hearing that. She even thought she had heard it wrong.
"I still want you to contract with Mango Entertainment."
"E-even after knowing all that."
"Yes, I like your singing and want to spread it all over Korea. Moreover, you already repented for your actions, right?"
"Y-you…!"
Tears started to form in Harin's eyes hearing that. She opened and closed her mouth, like she wanted to say something, but no words came out.
She pushed away her tears and finally opened her mouth.
"B-but will society and the people accept me?"
That was her biggest fear.
Even if she became a singer, society will only see her as a criminal.
"You don't have to worry about that."
"Ah?"
"If the society didn't accept you, then we just have to try harder for them to accept you. It's simple."
Lee Hyun said with a smile.
It was a smile that reassured Harin that everything will be fine. She just has to follow him and everything will automatically be fine.
At least that's what Harin thought.
More tears came out from her eyes when she thought that. She quickly lowered her head and started cleaning them.
'I can't back off now.'
Lee Hyun made a resolute decision. From the start, he had believed that a singer should be judged upon by singing.
Harin was a good singer.
Although her criminal record was a problematic thing, that won't stop him from making her a singer.
"W-why are you doing this for me? Aren't there better singers out there? Those that don't have a record?"
Harin suddenly asked as she stared at him.
No agency would want to take such a risk, but Lee Hyun was willing to take such a decision.
It was definitely odd, but Lee Hyun's answer stunned her.
"The reason is simple. I just like your singing."
"Ah? It can't be just that."
"Why not? Do I need another reason?"
Lee Hyun looked at her as he tilted his head. Harin suddenly felt flustered seeing the smile on his face.
She quickly lowered her head to stop herself from getting more embarrassed. Then, she muttered in a low voice.
"... Thank you."
Lee Hyun laughed seeing that and the atmosphere between them got lighter.
At that moment, Lee Hyun asked the question he was really curious about.
"Harin, did you really kill someone?"
Although she said that she was a murderer, Lee Hyun didn't believe it. He felt that someone like Harin can't commit such an act.
And he was thinking really correctly.
"I, I didn't kill anyone."
After a while, Harin said.
Lee Hyun has believed her. So, she didn't want to hide anything from him.
"Then?"
"I was framed!"
'Like I thought.'
Lee Hyun had already thought that something like that would have happened with her.
"If you were framed, then the person who framed you must be powerful."
Harin nodded her head.
"Yeah, he was actually the president of the agency I used to belong to."
Lee Hyun's eyes widened hearing that. He knew that Harin used to belong to an agency, but he didn't know that something like that had happened with her there.
"Who was the person who framed you?"
He asked and Harin hesitated to speak.
The face of the man who had framed her came into her mind. That cruel smile on his face that she had seen that day was still vivid in her mind.
Slowly, she opened her mouth.
"It was Bae Hyunsung, the president of Top Entertainment."