Geon's life at the zoo was surprisingly simple. After completing the sheet music, he didn't leave the zoo, waking up early to clean the animal enclosures in the morning, and taking care of Pie and Ricky during the day. After dinner, he would climb up the hill in the forest, singing songs and enjoying the scenery, sometimes sitting in front of the cage, and other times spending time with the animals while they sang.
However, unlike Geon, who led an ordinary and happy daily life, there was someone troubled.
Emma, the zoo director, was in the office, looking at documents with a happy expression. Emma sometimes smiled happily and sometimes looked troubled again. Olivia, who came in with an empty feed bin, asked her when she saw Emma like that.
"Director, what's wrong?"
Emma, who didn't notice Olivia come in because she was concentrating on the documents, said, slightly surprised.
"Oh! Olivia. When did you come? You surprised me."
Olivia chuckled and approached Emma, asking, "Why are you laughing and then looking troubled again?"
Emma said, holding up the documents.
"Um... It's the health indicators of our zoo animals... The indicators for this week are a bit unusual compared to last week."
Olivia widened her eyes and took the documents to look at them.
"What? What's wrong? Are there sick animals?"
Emma, sitting at her desk, looked up at Olivia and said.
"No. It's the opposite. There are no sick animals, and in fact, they've become healthier."
"Yes? How is that strange? It's good if the animals are healthy, Director."
"Yes, it's a good thing. But, Olivia..."
When Olivia looked at Emma, who was hesitant, Emma said with a troubled expression.
"We can't predict the health status of animals from countries with different climates. If we don't know the reasons for sudden improvements or deteriorations, even the current good health status can change in an instant. While it's good that they're healthy, not knowing the reason is worrying."
Olivia nodded and looked at the documents again.
"That could be true. But, 'Ellen,' one of the Arctic foxes, had a high fever all of last week, but now it says she's completely normal? It's not my responsibility, but I heard last week, the keeper complained that they might need to prepare themselves mentally."
Emma crossed her arms and said.
"That's right. Ellen was in a severe condition, and the veterinarians made a lot of effort because of that. She couldn't even eat and had to be given intravenous fluids."
"Yes. The veterinarians couldn't even guess the disease."
"Yes, but strangely enough, after two days, she started eating on her own, and on the third day, she was completely fine, running and playing with the other Arctic foxes. It's good that she's gotten healthier, but it's still worrying."
"Hmm... That's really strange. There hasn't been any change from the usual."
The two of them discussed for a long time, but they couldn't come to any conclusion. After Emma, who had continued to discuss even after the zoo's closing time, left for home, Olivia, who had cleaned up the office alone, walked to her dormitory lost in thought.
'This is strange. From the director's perspective, it's understandable that she'd be worried.'
Thinking to herself, Olivia went up to her dormitory, ate dinner with Alisa, Taylor, and Geon, and then, even after late evening, she couldn't find an answer despite thinking deeply. Feeling frustrated, she took Ricky for a walk in the zoo. As it was well past 10 o'clock, the zoo was deserted except for the security guards.
While watching Ricky running around and chasing butterflies, Olivia's ears caught a faint singing voice. The singing voice, accompanied by quiet guitar playing, whispered like a murmur.
"Everybody's looking for that something"
"One thing that makes it all complete"
Unknowingly, Olivia moved her steps towards where the singing was coming from. Baby bear Ricky also followed Olivia, twitching his ears. Passing the polar bear enclosure, the wolf enclosure, Olivia approached the hill where there was a large aviary. The size of the aviary was similar to a small apartment, with benches lined up around the circular-shaped aviary. As Olivia approached the aviary, the singing became slightly louder.
"You find it in the strangest places"
"Places you never thought it could be"
Looking up, Olivia saw the birds inside the aviary. Instead of flying away as they usually did when people approached, the birds were perched on branches or sitting on the ground, nodding their heads as if dozing off despite Olivia approaching. As Olivia looked around the aviary, she saw Geon sitting on a bench playing the guitar.
A beautiful boy closed his eyes and sang quietly, even more quietly than before, calming the heart like a lullaby.
"Who can deny the joy it brings"
"When you find that special thing"
"You're flying without wings"
Olivia watched Geon singing, her expression distant. She couldn't help but admire Geon's joyful singing and beautiful demeanor as he smiled widely with closed eyes. Olivia stood there, unable to take her eyes off Geon for quite some time. After a while, when Olivia regained her senses, she looked around to find Ricky, wanting not to disturb Geon.
As Olivia scanned the area, she spotted Ricky lying asleep in the grass nearby. With a smile, Olivia carefully picked up Ricky to ensure he didn't wake up and silently descended the hill with a birdcage in hand, muffling her footsteps. As she listened to Geon's beautiful singing, a sight she hadn't noticed before emerged: the animals, previously unseen, came into view.
With surprised eyes, Olivia looked around at the animal enclosures. Squirrels and monkeys, usually pestering for food or jumping around trees, were either sprawled out on branches with sleepy eyes or already asleep. Without making a sound, Olivia observed the animals and then turned her gaze elsewhere.
Polar bears, either sprawled out as if feeling hot or panting as they submerged themselves in water to cool off, were sleeping soundly, emitting contented grunts. Wolves, still retaining their wild instincts, gathered in corners, sleeping with rounded bodies while keeping watch over their surroundings. Olivia held Ricky and surveyed all the animals in the zoo. Not a single one seemed anxious or restless. With astonished eyes, Olivia glanced towards Geon's direction. From afar, faintly, Geon's singing could be heard carried by the wind.
"You're the place my life begins,
And you'll be where it ends.
I'm flying without wings,
And that's the joy you bring.
I'm flying without wings..."
As Olivia briefly fixed her gaze towards where Geon's singing could be heard, she chuckled.
"Oh... Could it be..."
Carrying the sleeping Ricky, Olivia headed back to the dormitory as the peaceful night at the Bronx Zoo deepened.
The next day, news spread about the birth of a new baby at the zoo. Zookeepers, bustling since dawn, hurried to finish their work and rush to the delivery room. Geon, who had been standing alone, put down his cleaning tools and headed back to the dormitory. As Geon walked alone towards the dormitory, Olivia, who was passing by in a truck, rolled down the window and leaned out.
"Geon, where are you going?"
Geon replied hesitantly, "Oh, everyone has gone to the delivery room. I'm going back to the dormitory."
Smiling, Olivia gestured, "Come on, you're in the sterile room now, so it's okay to see outside."
"Wow! Really? I really wanted to see it! Thank you, Olivia!"
With a smirk, Olivia, with Geon in the car, set off. After about three minutes, they arrived at the sterile room attached to the animal-exclusive delivery room. Through the window, a small, cute baby gorilla, its eyes not yet open, was fumbling its fingers and moving its hands. Seeing the zookeepers gathered around the window, celebrating the birth of the baby gorilla, Geon approached the window and looked at the adorable baby.
The birth of life was always mysterious. The baby gorilla, lying alone in the incubator, constantly moved its tiny body, announcing the beginning of a new life. Geon smiled, placing his finger on the window.
"Have you given the baby a name yet?"
Olivia, who was watching with her arms crossed, said, "Not yet. Usually, the director decides."
"I see. It's really cute."
After staring at the gorilla for a while, Geon suddenly laughed heartily, raising his hand high.
"It looks alike! Yes! Shiwa! Let's name her Shiwa, Director!"
Geon's daily life was simple. He would wake up early to clean the animal enclosure, go to school for rehearsals with Damian, Shaun, and the orchestra, then return to the dormitory in the evening to visit his baby gorilla, Shihwa, in the sterile room, have dinner, and play with Ricky and Pye.
Time flew by, and it was soon the eve of the Juilliard Orchestra's free concert.
A party hall was set up in the school's auditorium, and musicians, professors, sponsors, and acquaintances were attending the bustling party. Sabrina sat alone on a few chairs set up in a corner of the party hall, staring blankly at the festivities. While many musicians were enjoying themselves with sponsors and acquaintances, she seemed unable to mingle with them and sat alone in her chair.
Suddenly, the noise of people around her grew louder.
"Wow! It's Snoop Dogg!"
"Eek! Dr. Dre!"
"Demi Malley! It's Shaun Lennon!"
Startled, she turned her eyes toward the door to see Snoop Dogg wearing sunglasses entering. Following him were Damian and Shaun, with Geon appearing last. In an instant, people at the party surrounded them, and she glanced around nervously to catch a glimpse of Geon amidst the chaos.
What she saw was him smiling and greeting several people. Professors and familiar faces came forward to shake hands with Geon, who seemed to be popular among them. While Snoop and Dre were also mingling to build connections with Juilliard staff whom they were not usually close to, Sabrina noticed that instead of being surrounded by people like Geon, they were moving around greeting people here and there.
Beside Sabrina, Shaun approached and sat down. Sabrina stiffened her expression and remained composed as Shaun spoke.
"Nice to see you again, Sabrina."
Without giving Shaun any attention, Sabrina replied, facing forward.
"Yes, Mr. Lennon."
Shaun made an awkward expression and said, "Please greet me warmly. We work together, after all."
"Musicians can communicate through music. Please refrain from unnecessary familiarity."
"Sigh, you never give me a chance to get closer."
Despite Shaun's words, Sabrina's expression remained unchanged as she continued to face forward. Shaun glanced at her side profile and then turned his head in the direction Sabrina was looking. There was a cute blonde woman standing next to Kay, wearing a sky-blue party dress and leaning closely to Geon.
Sabrina swallowed hard and asked, "Who is that woman?"
"Who? The woman next to Kay over there?"
"Yes."
"Oh, that's Eminem's daughter, Hailey. You know Eminem, right? The rapper."
"Is she close with Kay?"
"Yes, they are. Hailey seems to like Kay, but..."
"She likes Kay?"
"Yes, even Eminem seems to approve of Kay, and everyone hopes they'll get along well. But Kay isn't interested in girls much, so who knows what will happen."
"I see..."
"Hailey is so pretty and cute, isn't she? You can tell she's been loved a lot since she was young. She's flawless."
"..."
"Seeing the two of them singing and playing in Dre's studio made Damian jealous. It seems like whether it's a man or a woman, if they're pretty and good-looking, they're worth seeing. Haha. Even though I never hear anyone say I'm ugly, I get treated like a monkey when I'm next to Kay."
Sabrina clenched her fists without saying a word and bowed her head. Seeing Sabrina trembling slightly, Shaun asked with a worried look, "Sabrina, are you okay?"
As Shaun lowered his head to examine her expression, Sabrina stood up abruptly and said, "I-I'm fine."
Sabrina left with brisk steps without saying anything more. Watching her retreating figure, Shaun clicked his tongue.
"Anyway, what a brat. It would be nice if she showed some gratitude when someone cares and shows kindness."
While Shaun scolded Sabrina alone for a while and looked around the party, Geon, who had greeted people and finally reached Shaun's side, approached. As Geon sat down next to Shaun, he asked, "Shaun, why the long face? What happened?"
Shaun frowned and said, "Oh, nothing, just that woman, Sabrina. She's too much, ignoring people's kindness like that."
Hailey pricked her ears and asked, "Shaun, who's Sabrina?"
"She's... the conductor of the orchestra."
Geon looked around with his finger tapping the bottle of alcohol while Snoop was holding and, seeing no one on the second floor, he walked out onto the terrace. Since everyone seemed to be enjoying the party, there was no one on the second floor. As Geon felt the wind blowing at the entrance of the terrace with curtains drawn, he saw Sabrina leaning on the terrace railing.
"Oh? Sabrina, are you here?"
Startled by Geon's sudden voice, Sabrina turned around. Geon laughed brightly as he leaned on the terrace and looked outside.
"Hehe! It feels good. It was too crowded inside."
Sabrina looked at Geon's side profile blankly for a moment, then leaned on the terrace with a flushed face, looking outside. Geon stretched and said,
"Does Sabrina also not like alcohol?"
"Yes? Oh, no. I drink occasionally."
"I see. I'm starting to understand the taste of beer now, but I can't drink whiskey. Snoop only gives me whiskey every day. Drinking alcohol is to get drunk, but drinking alcohol that doesn't get you drunk is a luxury! Like this."
"Oh... haha, I see."
After taking a quick glance at Sabrina's side profile, Geon said,
"She's kind to me, but is Shaun overdoing it a bit?"
Startled, Sabrina clenched her fists and bowed her head deeply.
"Oh! No, it's not. I'm just a bit shy..."
"Ah~ I see. Haha, do you have feelings for Shaun?"
Surprised, Sabrina shouted, "No!! Who would like someone like him!"
Geon looked a little surprised when Sabrina suddenly shouted, then smiled slightly and said, "Ah... I'm sorry."
Sabrina covered her mouth, repeatedly apologizing, "Oh! No, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Geon smiled slightly as he watched her.
"Is the orchestra preparation going well? I watched yesterday's rehearsal, and it seems like we don't need to worry."
Sabrina said, clasping her hands together.
"I'm doing my best. So that I won't disgrace Kay's reputation."
"Reputation? The reputation of Juilliard Orchestra is much more impressive. And the funds raised from this free concert will all go to a good cause. It's an honor to be able to perform like this."
"Oh.. I see."
"Sabrina, when did you start with music?"
"Well.. I started when I was four. Both my parents were classical musicians."
"Wow, you must have received proper early education."
"Haha, yes, something like that."
Sabrina smiled happily during her first private time with Geon, but their time together didn't last long.
"Kay! There you are?"
Geon turned around with a bright smile at the sudden voice.
"Hailey, did you come looking for me?"
Hailey laughed and hooked her arm with Geon's.
"Yeah! I've been looking everywhere for you."
Geon laughed and glanced back at Sabrina as they stepped away from the terrace. Sabrina was bowing her head, avoiding eye contact, and staring at the ground. Geon passed by Sabrina and said,
"It seems like there are many people looking for you downstairs. Let's talk again next time, Miss Sabrina."
Sabrina nodded slightly with her head still down.
"Yes.. Mr. Kay."
As Geon and Hailey descended the stairs, Sabrina's eyes twitched thinly as she watched their backs. Her clenched fists trembled slightly. Even after Geon and Hailey disappeared, her gaze remained fixed on the empty space they left behind. As a chilly breeze blew across the terrace, her face, which she had buried in her hands, was revealed. Her cold eyes shone blue under the night sky.
As Geon and Hailey descended, Snoop said to Hailey,
"Hailey, your dad was worried because you weren't picking up the phone. You should call him."
Hailey glanced at the phone in the back and exclaimed,
"Oh my! 81 missed calls? Seriously! Dad isn't even a stalker, geez! Kay, I'll make a quick call."
Hailey gestured to Geon and moved towards the table where the food was laid out to make the call. Geon, watching her with a smile, said to Snoop,
"Snoop, you seem to adapt well to places like this? I thought you wouldn't like parties where people in suits hold wine glasses and talk."
Snoop chuckled, taking a sip of wine.
"Hey, do you think I haven't been to places like this before? Once you reach my level, you get invited to almost every party."
"Oh, really? You have experience?"
"This kid, I'm Snoop, man."
As Snoop tapped his chest with his fist, Geon saw the door opening in the distance, and four sturdy men walked in. Geon nodded with a smirk.
"Hey? Detective Jeffrey?"
Snoop turned his head and asked,
"What? A detective? What's a detective doing here?"
"He's the detective in charge of the stalking case. What's going on here?"
Approaching Jeffrey with a puzzled look, Geon asked,
"Detective! Hello? What's going on here?"
After seeing Geon, Jeffrey looked around sharply and said to the officers standing behind him,
"Search."
Seeing the officers quickly dispersing, Geon asked,
"Detective? What's happening?"
Jeffrey said seriously,
"Is there a student named Sabrina Molly in Juilliard?"
"Yes? Sabrina? She's the conductor of the orchestra... Why?"
"Do you know her?"
"Well.. a little.."
"Videos of Kay were found on her web hard drive. Also, bugged sound files."
Geon widened his eyes in surprise.
"What? Are you saying Sabrina is the culprit?"
"Yes. When did you last see her?"
Geon turned his head to look at the party. The people in the party seemed to move in slow motion. And he saw Sabrina, holding a steak knife, rushing towards Hailey with a terrifying expression. Hailey, busy talking to Eminem on the phone, didn't see Sabrina running towards her from behind.
"No!!!!!! Hailey!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"